Faults and Prejudices
by Greenpeapanda
Summary: Hermione is content. She is working for Kingsley to abolish old pureblood laws and is about to marry Ron in four short months. What will happen when Kingsley sends her to Malfoy manor for research? Do people really change? Who is the little pale blonde girl she sees trying to steal a book in Diagon Alley? [HG/DM] Non-compliant with epilogue. (Under Revision)
1. The Assignment

_**Tiny forward note: I don't own Harry Potter. That's a shocker. Also, this fan fiction is currently under some updates. That does not mean that I am abandoning it- I am merely fixing a few things so I can move on.**_

 _ **Also: if you are uncomfortable with the Draco/Hermione pairing, the thought of Hermione not falling to pieces when she enters the Manor, fights with Ron Weasley, or forgiving Draco- this is not the fan fiction for you.**_

 _ **With all of that nonsense out of the way, I hope you enjoy!**_

Hermione Granger was washing dishes in the cozy kitchen of the small London flat that she shared with Ron Weasley, after that night's meal. She enjoyed the relaxing feeling of warm water flowing over her skin as she mindlessly scrubbed dinner plates. She used the down time to reflect upon the decisions she had made recently. Currently, she was debating whether or not she was right to have taken the job as Deputy Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement giving up her influential position as the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. She had been able to overhaul laws restricting the rights of werewolves and house elves, which subsequently lead to Kingsley Shacklebolt approaching her to take her current position. Despite leaving her position in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, she was unsure of her replacement. Hermione wanted to make sure all of her work was not in vain. She would never forgive herself if either the _Lupin Law for Werewolf Rights and Protections_ or the _Dobby Law for House Elf Welfare_ were repealed because she was not there to defend them.

Since her promotion, Kingsley had saddled her with the job of breaking old pureblood laws. Hermione had assumed that the only action required to bring down the laws would be to create a case against them in Wizengamot and draw a popular vote against it. However, nothing was that simple when extremely old, bigoted Purebloods were involved. The laws needed to be literally broken. They had a whole army of curses and wards placed on the actual parchment that needed to be disabled before the law could be brought into Wizengamot. They were carefully layered to make the process as painful as possible, and Hermione's mind was working harder than when she was studying for her NEWTs. Needless to say, she was loving it, but anyone could see that she was more than a little overwhelmed.

She was interrupted from her musings by a tap at the window. She quickly finished her last dish and dried her hands. With a wave of her wand, the window opened, and Kingsley's great gray owl swooped in with a small note tied to it's leg. Slightly worried, Hermione untied the letter from the owl and gave it a piece of leftover chicken. She received a happy hoot before the owl soared back out the window. She hesitated a second before tearing open the letter, her mind swimming with doubts and possibilities. _What if the marriage law cannot be undone? Or was he telling her that he was not happy enough with her work, and he's sending her back to her old department?_

"Hermione,

I have found someone to help you crack the Muggle Marriage Act. I know he doesn't have the brightest history with you, but he has access to much more information than we do. You are to meet Mr. Malfoy at his manor tomorrow around noon. You can take the day off to discuss our issue with him. Floo to the address below, and he will meet you to take you through the Malfoy Manor wards.

Good Luck,

Kingsley Shacklebolt

Minister of Magic"

In that moment, Hermione was glad that Ron had to work late so that he could not see her freeze and mentally freak out. She prided herself on being an open-minded person that believed that anyone can change, but she couldn't help but wonder if the old childhood rivalry would come out? Had Malfoy really changed? He had kept a low profile for the past five years, and she wondered if that was long enough to wipe away years of blood prejudice. Could she handle going back into the same mansion she was once tortured in with the same person that only stood and watched those atrocities? What if he had changed? Could she handle treating Malfoy as anything other than a bigoted prick?

Hermione glanced up at the clock on the wall: 22:30. _Had she really just stood there for an hour thinking about_ _ **Malfoy**_ _?_ She sighed and began her nightly routine as she continued to overanalyze tomorrow's events. She was in bed, pondering of the possibility of Malfoy locking her in his mansion and slowly killing her, when the front door shut rather loudly. _"Well, Ron's home,"_ Hermione thought in a mildly irritated tone. Did she really want to explain to Ron that she would be spending the next day with Malfoy, who Ron still cannot get over disliking five years later, and stay up all night arguing or pretend to be asleep and tell him afterwards? She slowed her breathing and closed her eyes, feigning sleep as he walked in quietly, and got ready for bed. He then kissed her on the forehead before flopping down next to her where he promptly fell into a deep slumber.

Ron's snores changed Hermione's train of thought. She was still trying to wrap her (very large) brain around her quickly approaching nuptials to her fiancé. It had taken two years of healing and rebuilding after the war for her and Ron to get back together. She had decided to take the relationship slow, as there was something about almost dying on multiple occasions that changed Hermione. She was in no hurry to get married quickly or have children. She wanted to enjoy dating, then being engaged. However, the ceremony was in four months, and it seemed like time was passing all too quickly. She had been wondering if she was she making the right decision. _"Hermione, stop,"_ she thought to herself. _"You love Ron. You are going to marry him. Now, go to sleep or you're going to look like a hag when you meet Malfoy tomorrow."_ With that, Hermione fell into a dreamless sleep as usual.

oo00oo

"Have a great day at work," Hermione said as she kissed Ron who was on his way out of the door. He smiled and pulled her into a hug, "You too, honey. Dinner together tonight. Okay?" He looked down at her with his goofy grin, and she chuckled as she agreed. "Good. Love you!" He shouted on his way out of the door. "Love you too," she whispered as the door shut.

She was going to meet Malfoy in four hours, and she wanted everything in order. Her need to prove herself back from her days at Hogwarts came crawling out, and she picked out a smart work outfit. It said 'I'm classy, intelligent, and attractive." She didn't know why, but she wanted to show him that she is still more intelligent than him, and most certainly not a "filthy mudblood", but a very attractive woman he could never have. All of her competitiveness was rearing its ugly head as she looked in the mirror. Her hair fell into curls, not just a brown mass. The dark grey skirt was modest, but showed off her well worked calves, the white button up shirt was smart, and hinted that she has indeed filled out since she was 17. Paired with a slightly more daring pair of maroon pumps and a light, smoky peacoat, she looked dang good, even if she was slightly biased. Ginny would be so proud.

Hermione flooed to the ministry to pick up her notes on the marriage law and get some advice from her best friend, Harry. The elevator ride was excruciating. She had 6 memos peg her in the head, and the elevator stopped on every floor. Once she finally arrived at the 5th floor, she jetted into her office to retrieve the paperwork and hurry on to Harry's office in the Auror department.

"Hey, Hermione. You're actually late today. Is something wrong?" asked a deep voice from behind her.

Hermione turned around to see her secretary, Joseph, wearing a concerted face. He was an extremely tall young man at a towering 190 centimeters and skinny as a rail. His black hair was cropped close to his scalp displaying his almost goofily large ears and bright brown eyes. She laughed and told him the full story- he was just as bad as Ginny when it came to collecting gossip. "I have the day off as I will be working at Malfoy Manor to research the marriage law today at the Minister's orders." Joseph's face paled and he looked slightly scared which was almost humorous for his size.

"Why do you have to go there?" he asked, his thick eyebrows knitted together while chewing on his bottom lip.

"Don't worry about me. The Malfoy library simply has more information than the Ministry's library. I'll be fine. I promise," Hermione soothed even though her anxiety was tearing her up on the inside. This seemed to appease the young man for the time being, so Hermione took advantage of his slight pause, "Well, I have to go talk to Harry. Can you please take the documents on my desk about the muggle memory law and give them to Travis? They might help him." He smiled and nodded quickly, eager to take orders from the famous war hero. "Thank you," she called out on her way out of the office.

Another painful experience in the creaky old elevator got her to Harry's department with an hour to spare before she had to meet Malfoy. Hermione knocked quickly on his door before inviting herself in. She found Harry lifting his messy hair out of his eyes and his head off his desk from the nap he had be previously engaged in. She giggled at his mop-like hair and dopy expression and sat across from him. "Having a slow day?" She asked.

"You don't even know," he groaned. "Now why are you here exactly? Not to be rude, I just usually don't see you this early at work," he quickly amended himself as to not offend his friend.

"I have a bit of a predicament. I have to go to Malfoy manor to research a law. I don't think Kingsley would send me there unless it was a last resort, but I don't know how to handle it," she explained, then jumped and added, "Oh! Please don't tell Ron. I haven't told him yet because you know he'll throw a fit, and I didn't have time for a fight over something I can't change last night."

"Well.." Harry begun as he contemplated the situation. He was obviously uncomfortable with the situation. "This is just a business deal, so treat it as that, but if he hurts you I will kill him." Hermione rolled her eyes at the last bit, but it was good advice. "If he calls you a you-know-what, ignore him. Don't let him bully you, but don't go in assuming that he hasn't changed since we were kids. But also don't let it surprise you if he hasn't."

"No expectations. When did you get so good at advice?" Hermione joked, winking at Harry.

"Since I actually began listening to you," he laughed.

Hermione glanced down at her watch. 11:50.

"Oh! I have to go. Love you Harry!" she hollered as she ran out of the room, not even bothering to listen for a reply.

The elevator couldn't seem to move slower as Hermione checked her watch every few seconds. In a stroke of luck, she made it to the Floo with exactly one minute to spare. She yelled, "155 Burberry Lane Avebury, Biddestone, Wiltshire!" and walked into the flames.

She stumbled out into a seemingly abandoned house in the country. The floral wallpaper was falling off in shreds, the floor had gaping holes decorating it, and the ceiling bowed in uncomfortably in the small room she landed in. Gripping her wand, she scanned her surroundings for threats. The war will never fully leave those it affected.

"Hello? Malfoy?" Hermione called out, still on alert for potential attacks. A familiar voice echoed from behind her, "Granger?"

Hermione swung around with wand out and a spell at the tip of her tongue as she pointed her wand at a very surprised Draco Malfoy.

 _ **A.N./ Please feel free to review with comments, criticisms, or critiques. I hope you have a fabulous day.**_


	2. Biting Books

_**Disclaimer: *gasp* I still don't own Harry Potter.**_

 _ **Enjoy.**_

For a second she contemplated the risks of lowering her wand around Malfoy- her heart hammering in her chest, but Harry's advice popped into her head and reminded her to act professional; despite the fact that she just showed her former enemy how deeply the war scarred her. She lowered her wand and apologized, "I'm sorry Mr. Malfoy, you took me by surprise."

Draco Malfoy had to employ every bit of self-discipline his mother and father beat into his head as a child to not make a snide remark about how Hermione ruined the little effort she seemed to have put into her looks. However, he also realized that making that comment would show that he paid a tiny bit of attention to her appearance and that was simply not acceptable. He figured that if Hermione wanted to act as if their past never happened, he should comply: for now. Deep in the back of his mind, he realized that he would not have thought those things about any other woman. It seemed that just like Hermione, Draco was subconsciously reverting back to his childhood self.

"It is okay, Ms. Granger. Please follow me to Malfoy Manor." He was planning to apparate them to the outer gates, but his mind screamed, "Don't let the Mudblood touch you!" Despite his best efforts, his rearing had made a rather large mark on him that was difficult to erase no matter the change of heart he had long ago.

Hermione, meanwhile, couldn't help herself from noting how polite Malfoy had been. Her guard was far from down, but she decided that a death grip on her wand was not needed, and proceeded to follow him out of the desolate Victorian and toward a slim brick road.

oo00oo

They must been walking for 20 minutes before Hermione could tell they were close to Malfoy Manor. She stepped onto the larger path that Draco turned onto, then all of a sudden the Manor, in all of it's dark elegance, appeared in front of her. She froze for a long minute, reliving painful memories while staring up at the many torrents and wings of the stormy castle. She could feel her skin burning while Bellatrix's cursed blade tore through her flesh all the while the mad woman was screaming, "Where is it?" Her limbs twitched at every crucio that played out like a broken record in her mind.

Draco also stopped, fully prepared to tell Ms. Know-it-All that they were at his home finally, but as he turned around to give her orders to keep walking, he saw her wide-eyed, frozen in fear. Snarky quips flowed through his head, but-like his emotions which bubbled up with guilt- he pushed them down when he realized that he was part of the reason that such a strong woman was now quaking from terror. He immediately evaluated himself. It was not okay to show her softness, but it was also not proper to be cold when a woman is in such a state- Granger or not. "Did I just think of Granger as a woman? Did I also compliment her? Draco! Get a hold of yourself!" Draco reprimanded himself internally. After a mental battle, he decided that her would give her directions with slightly more kindness than he would normally. This would break her of her horrifying memories and not get him injured for insulting her while she was not in complete control. His memory flipped to the slap in third year. "Definitely not provoking her," he internally flinched.

"Granger. I need you to take my arm to be able to get passed the wards," Draco directed gently. He briefly cringed at touching her, but also pushed that down, as not allowing her access to his home, thus pissing off the Minister of Magic would not get his reputation back.

-o-

Malfoy's voice penetrated through the memories that were playing like a horror film in front of her eyes, knocking her back into reality. Her face flushed from embarrassment. This was the second time in half an hour that he witnessed her weakness; she needed to show him she was not some frail, damaged girl (even if she may be a bit damaged, he did not need to know that), so she adjusted herself quickly, straightening her back and keeping her head up as she took Malfoy's outstretched arm. Her face molded itself back into a mask of polite indifference. "Thank you, now, do you know anything about the Muggle Marriage Act of 1205?" she asked, hoping to redirect the conversation and hopefully distract him from her recent actions. She knew that it was easier to sound like her swotty younger self and irritate him, than to delve into the tremulous emotions that surrounded her history here.

-o-

"Same old Granger. Has she forgotten already that she's coming here for my help?" Malfoy thought as he vaguely replied to her question. _Her arm is warm and soft_ momentarily popped into his mind, but he caught himself and scolded himself internally, "No, no, no. This is Hermione-wouldn't-shut-up-to-save-her-life-Granger. No attraction." He then shut down any branches of thought that did not relate to the current mission at hand and vital motor-movements.

-o-

Hermione was becoming increasingly annoyed with the man next to her. Malfoy was giving her bland answers that barely answered her questions, and her feet had begun to kill her thanks to her sexy, but impractical, pumps. She was contemplating strangling him when they both arrived at the grand doors to the Malfoy residence. At once, a house elf opened the door and took their jackets against Hermione's avid protests.

"Calm down Granger. The house elves are paid and follow all of your new bloody laws. You should have had to be the one to tell them they were required vacation. I'd like to see you deal with 20 crying elves who thought I was punishing them. Just give Dinky your coat and we can move on. I'd rather this not take all day," Malfoy drawled, back to his old self. One that she longed to slap again. However, one particular bit of information niggled at the back of her mind.

"Dinky?" Hermione said incredulously. "Are you Winky's brother?"

"Yes, Miss. Dinky miss Winky very much. You know Winky?" The little elf asked with his big eyes boring into hers with interest while flitting back warily to the irritated look on his master's face to make sure he wasn't doing anything wrong.

"Yes, I saw her at Hogwarts when I returned for my final year. She is recovering. I hope you can see her. Malfoy can give you my address, and you can come by on your vacation days where I will arrange you to see Winky again," Hermione smiled. She loved helping the house elves, after all, it was her life passion for almost three years.

"Dinky would much like that," Dinky beamed up at Hermione.

-o-

Draco, watching the encounter from the sidelines was slightly annoyed at the delay. "Just because I do not have a formal job does not mean I do not have tasks I must complete everyday. What do they think, I have all the time in the world, and I loaf around all day because I have money?" Draco muttered to himself. Finally growing peeved, he loudly droned, "Granger, I do not have all day." When he turned toward his house elf, his face morphed into an impassive mask only his eyes betraying his adoration. "Please excuse us Dinky, but we have business to attend to. Will you please have tea brought up to the library?"

The little house elf nodded furiously- eager to please- and popped away.

-o-

Hermione was a bit miffed that her humanitarianism was cut short, but she followed Malfoy up the magnificent staircase and down many hallways to the ordinate doors to the Malfoy library. She was practically drooling with anticipation to see the thousands of books that contained the knowledge of an ancient family. The excitement was enough to keep her dark memories at bay and distract her from Malfoy's presence.

Her jaw could have hit the floor when he swung open the doors and the smell of parchment and old bindings flowed toward her. It was everything she dreamed it would be and more. Shelves and shelves of books that went on as far as she could see. So many tomes full of knowledge yet to be had. The ministry would probably destroy half of these books if they knew about them, but she could care less. "I could get used to this," Hermione thought, a bright smile lifting her face while she took in the vast collection. She almost wished that this law would take forever to break if it meant her being able to have access to the beautiful library.

Hermione began unconsciously walking towards the many rows, itching to run her fingers down the bindings. She was snapped out of her trance when Malfoy jerked her back away from the white volume she was about to caress. Anger flared up inside of her. Could she not have one moment of bliss amongst the very things she loved most without Malfoy ruining it? She was about to let Malfoy know exactly what she was going to curse off of him if he every did that again when she saw his expression.

-o-

Draco had begun to take a seat to start the inevitably boring discussion about some pureblood law when he glanced toward Hermione. She was reaching out to touch a book. A book that would give severe burns if touched by someone of un-pure ancestry. The short-lived thought that he should let her touch it and learn her lesson the hard way was shoved away as he lurched away from his seat to yank her away from her interest. He gripped her forearm and pulled her into him (without thought- or so he told himself). "What the hell is she thinking? She should be smart enough to know that this library has dark books. Why the bloody hell would she touch them without knowing what they are? The stupid woman!" he internally ranted. When she turned to face him with righteous fury glowing in her eyes, he was about to superiorly point out her utter ignorance, but her expression changed and left him slightly shocked. Was that gratitude? Was that what Hermione Granger's face looked like when she was grateful? Her face was soft. Her eyes stared up at his own like that of a doe, and her lips formed an adorable little "o". He liked that face.

-o-

Hermione realized what had happened when she looked at Malfoy. How could she be so…so…unintelligent? What would that book have done to her if it wasn't for Malfoy actually helping her? Should she even dare to say saving her? No! Saving was for princesses and Hermione was not a princess. She could take care of herself. But when she looked at those deep grey eyes, she thought they softened just a little, and she realized she liked them better that way. This was when Hermione realized that her and Malfoy were embracing and staring into eachother's eyes. It seemed to have hit both at the same time, and they pushed each other away- softness fading as quickly as it came.

Trying not to linger on the feeling of his large hand grasping her arm, she started to ramble. "So, the law states that a pureblood cannot marry a muggle or muggle-born without the permission of the head of house, and muggles and muggle-born's have no rights to any possessions shared during the 'accidental union'- meaning any romantic or sexual relations they had- and the children of such a union are the property of the pureblood to do with as he pleases. If the pureblood is female-" Hermione explained, feeling the awkward tension dissipating, but Malfoy interrupted her- per usual.

"What does "to do with as he pleases" mean?" Malfoy asked with an odd, distant expression.

"Well a pureblood male can chose to keep the child or to kill it. Since the child is seen as a possession, there is no penalty to end it's life. It's barbaric and wrong," Hermione expressed with passionate venom. She hated these pureblood laws. If you were a male pureblood, you had power over everything. It was not right to Hermione, and every word she uttered about the subject was accompanied by deep-seeded, un-disguised contempt. "Why do you ask?" The simple question brought out of her ire and directed her attention to him. At the back of her mind, she started to scrutinize his words to understand why he seemed to care so much.

"Clarification," Malfoy uttered stiffly, unable to look her in the eye. He took all the questions that swirled through his conscious and threw them in a box to think about tonight. Right now, he needed to help the witch in front of him, so she could get out of his manor, and he could think. "Now, what is it exactly that you don't know about this law?" Malfoy asked with a drawl as if he was bored.

"How to un-do it. Who made it. I don't even know what magic was put into it that sealed it into law!" she ranted and plopped down on a chair, exasperated.

-o-

It was the first time Draco had ever heard Granger admit that she didn't know something, the only reaction he could produce was rolling laughter. What was so funny about it? Not much. But finally karma seemed to have caught up with her and that was enough to send Draco into a fit of deep laughter.

Malfoy's amusement only furthered Hermione's cantankerous mood. She huffed and stood back up, intent on finding an informative book herself since Malfoy was useless. She was halfway to a distinctly old shelf when he called out to her.

-o-

"Granger, sit. I'll tell you what I know. But if you want to ignore me, I will not save you next time you touch an evil book." Draco had composed himself and figured that ruffling her feathers would her will only extend her stay. He wanted her gone and giving her answers she wanted was the best way to achieve his goals.

-o-

Hermione turned back around and laid eyes on Malfoy's somber face. Believing both his threat and his promise, she sat down in the chair across from him and summoned parchment and a quill from her beaded bag. She readied her quill and looked up at him expectantly finding a glint of satisfaction and amusement in his eyes.

"So the law-" Draco started.

 _ **A.N./ If you enjoyed this chapter, hated it down to the bottom of your soul, or was super annoyed at the incorrect use of a comma, feel free to tell me in the reviews. I hope you have a fandiddlytastic day!**_


	3. More Problems

_**I don't own Harry Potter- please don't sue me. I have too many student loans for that.**_

Hermione was dutifully scratching down every word that came out of Draco's mouth like he was giving a world famous speech. She was learning more than she could have ever found in the Ministry library. Pureblood laws were complicated and intricate and they entrapped her attention with a hunger that she had not felt since her beginning years at Hogwarts. The new information was fascinating despite the atrocities that the laws enforced. Despite the allure she felt toward the mosaic of the magic weaved into the legislation, it also meant she had to reverse it- for that she was groaning internally. It seemed she was going to need Malfoy a bit longer after all. Most of the laws could only be broken by a pureblood from the family that wrote them, and as a member of the family that created over half of the laws, Malfoy was her, dare she say, only hope.

Draco was throughly enjoying Granger literally holding on to his every word. It was a rare occasion, so he was going to milk if for all it was worth. He would periodically throw in a sentence or two of absolutely useless information that she would undoubtedly have to sort through later. She now had half of the family history of his house elves and some details about his favourite childhood tales thrown into her research. He honestly believed that she wasn't even listening, just writing as quickly as she could. Yet, she still continued to scribble away ten minutes after his lecture ran dry.

What could she possibly be writing? Granger was so throughly engrossed in what she was doing that she didn't notice him walk behind her to peek at her notes. For how quickly she was writing, her penmanship was neat, orderly, and efficient- not beautiful like the script he was forced to learn as a child, but so entirely Hermione Granger. She was now writing in the margins, connecting concepts with well defined lines, and underlining important bits. It was a front row seat to Granger's thought process, and it was captivating. That is, until he fell motionless on the floor.

-o-

Hermione all of a sudden felt a movement behind her. Panicking, she grabbed her wand in a flash and paralyzed the person behind her. After she scanned the room for more danger, she found Malfoy frozen in a hunched position, lying on the floor behind her chair. "Malfoy? What were you doing behind me?" she inquired as she lifted the jinx.

"Well, I stopped talking half an hour ago. I merely wanted to know what you were writing," he groaned as he rubbed his sore side from hitting the floor. Maybe he was exaggerating the time estimate, but he wanted her to feel guilt for putting him in a very unmanly heap in the ground.

"Oh. Sorry. I just started thinking-" Hermione had begun.

"About how all it would take is a bucket of my blood and loads of hours of time to counter the spells?" Malfoy interrupted arrogantly. "Now, if you don't mind, I have very few hours left in my day I would like to spend some of it working on personal projects." He began to swagger out of the library, and Hermione shoved all of her supplies sloppily in her bag and chased after him. He smirked with pleasure at the knowledge that she was struggling to follow him, and like it or not, she needed him.

"Stupid. Long. Legs," she grumbled as she readied herself to chase after him. "Malfoy! We need to meet again and discuss all of this. We obviously need your help unravelling these," she panted as she caught up. When he did not reply, she huffed, "can you at least tell me the next time I can meet to talk with you again? I don't like this anymore than you do!"

"Owl me," Draco declared, his nose in the air with his best impression of aristocratic hauteur, right before he walked into a random room and slammed the door in Hermione's face. He beamed with satisfaction knowing that he had properly riled her up.

She stomped her foot in her temper and stormed for the door. Letting out a "Ugh!" while she trudged down the stairs, not hearing his soft chuckles behind the closed door. She could barely manage a, "Thank you Dinky!" before she virtually raced off the property and apparated home.

~oo00oo~

Draco breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the front doors slam. Maybe shutting a door in her face was a bit rude, but he couldn't help his natural urge to vex is school rival- he justified. She attacked him, hardly apologized, then began demanding more of his time, who did she think she was? Plus, he had that law on his mind for hours and he needed to sort through his thoughts. When the Minister had contacted him with the request to help one of his employees with pureblood law research, he had no clue that it would lead to this.

"…and the children of such a union are the property of the pureblood to do with as he pleases…chose to keep the child or to kill it…" The line repeated in his mind over and over like a scratched record.

"Dammit."

oo00oo

Hermione sighed and ran her hand through the rats nest she called her hair as she bent over her notes on her desk. "There's something missing. I know it," she obsessed. Her notes were filled annotations and lines connecting ideas. But there was one thing missing. The law required the entirety of the Sacred Twenty eight's blood- a drop from each member and the signature of the Minister of Magic. The laws were bound with layers of spells. But breaking the spells wasn't too difficult. What had Hermione stumped was two things that she believed _must_ be connected, but she had no idea how. To start, each law had a different set of binding spells -this made sense for the protection of the laws. However, there was something about each one that made them seem like tags- identification for... something. Then, there was the missing families from the Sacred Twenty eight. Where did they go? The Rosier and Fawley families didn't seem to participate, as their was no recording of them signing the law, yet it was bound by all members of the group. Incest? The families were known for 'keeping it in the family'- Sirius had always joked about the Black family tree's intertwined branches.

Hermione moaned from mental strain. Maybe she just needed a pint of ice cream and a relaxing bubble bath to get her mind on the back on tract. She padded over to the freezer, just as her hand touched the Rocky Road, when Ron opened the front door. It hit her that she hadn't told him about Malfoy yet, which only meant trouble. She grumbled about not being able to finish her work as she put the ice cream back and walked out to greet her fiancé.

"Hey Mione," Ron smiled brightly. He pulled her into a hug and kissed her briefly before asking, "So, what's for dinner?"

Hermione hesitated. Should she tell him before or after dinner? "Lasagna. It'll be ready soon," she smiled weakly. As soon as she got in the kitchen she pulled out the frozen lasagna Molly sent over last week. The Weasley matriarch had started sending over weekly meals thinking that Ron would "starve" if he only ate Hermione's cooking after he had complained to her about some pasta Hermione made one night. As if a man couldn't live off a single course dinner. Snorting derisively, she shoved the meal in the oven for fifteen minutes- as Molly marked on the top of the container- and went out to chat before supper.

"What's this?" Ron held up her notes with an irritated face. Hermione internally groaned. She knew this was coming, but that never made the fights any easier. His face was pink with barely controlled rage, and she almost turned off the oven knowing that the next hour of her life would be spent in a quarrel. This was a common occurrence since they had began dating, and the reason she had spent many nights sleeping in the guest room at friends' houses.

"My thoughts from an interview on the current law we're trying to abolish," she said simply hoping that he would let it go until he finished eating.

Ron's face started flaming even darker; she could almost see the smoke coming from his ears. "Then why the _**hell**_ is Malfoy's name on this paper?" Ron gritted through his teeth, clearly very upset.

Hermione took a soothing breath to try to calm down. She knew that no matter her reply, Ron was about to start screaming, but she still tried to sooth his anger with a calm explanation. "Ron, he was the only one that had a library with information on the history of the law," she told him slowly.

"I don't want you anywhere near him, Hermione! Why didn't you tell me about this?" He yelled, stepping close to her and waving her notes around wildly, crumpling her hard work.

Hermione had lost her temper at this point. She was never known to be very patient, and Ron only made her more hot-headed. How dare he ruin her hard work without any consideration for her position! "Ronald, don't you see that I didn't tell you because of this reaction! I _**had**_ to interview Malfoy because it is apart of my job given to me by the _**Minister of Magic**_. I trust that Kingsley would never put me in danger," she shouted back at him, hands on her hips, ready for a fight.

"When it comes to your safety, I sure as hell know better than him! Malfoy is evil! Not to be trusted and Kingsley put you in the same mansion as him, alone. Not to mention you were tortured in the same place by Bellatrix!" Ron nearly screamed the last part and moved so that he was a foot in front of Hermione, violently waving his hands to emphasize his ire at her.

"You don't think I don't remember that every single time I close my eyes? But I handle myself! I know what I need to do and I do it. This law is important to me. Don't you trust that I can handle Malfoy?" she questioned in a low, threatening manner -the tone of voice Ron understood and realized if he put one toe out of line he would be sleeping alone on the doorstep.

"I trust you, I just don't trust him!" Ron argued back. Then, in an act of incredible stupidity that he immediately regretted, he spat out, "I refuse to let you go back!"

Now, that was enough to push Hermione over the edge.

"Ronald Weasley you don't have the right to control me!" she said slapping his arm, her voice slowly getting to menacing. "Did you ever think that I didn't tell you because you would act like a child and get so angry that I couldn't get my work done? If I told you last night you would have kept me up fighting, and if I told you this morning you would have made me late fighting! I'm sick of fighting! And I'm tired of you trying to restrict anything I do that you happen to dislike. Relationships are democracies not dictatorships" Her rant ended just as the kitchen timer began to sound. "Goodnight, Ronald," voiced curtly.

Hermione stormed into their room, brandished her wand and promptly muttered, "Colloportus" right before Ron began to noisily bang on the door to try to get in. She then stuffed her needed toiletries and tomorrow's set of clothes into her beaded bag. Giving herself a second to look around the room, she noted an emptiness that took over her heart at the sight of the state of their quarters. The room was sparsely decorated with only two pictures from their Hogwarts days gracing the walls. Their bed was made, the only embellishment to the plain red duvet being a worn Chudley Canons throw pillow. The room didn't feel right. Hermione let the feeling go when a shout from the other side of the door pulled her from her reverie. She walked toward the door, whispered, "Alohomora", stepped over Ron, who fell to the floor when the door magically unlocked, and strode out the front door without a second glance.

She apparated to Diagon Alley in her angry flourish. She was sick of fighting- she had done enough of that in the war. Upon seeing the alley that always brought a sense of wonder over her, the storm that had built up inside her burnt out and left her with misery. She started unconsciously heading to Flourish and Blotts and didn't even realize where she was until she was already there. Once she was in her sanctuary, she walked along the shelves, tracing spines and softly humming to herself letting all of her negative feelings fall away to the relaxing smell of parchment and ink. She had spent an hour in the store and picked up 5 books along the way, effectively ridding herself of all thoughts related to her fiancé.

On her way to the checkout counter, a flash of white-blonde hair caught her eye. Curiosity getting the better of her, she followed the source until she found a little girl behind a shelf in the back of the store trying to nick a book from the shelf un-noticed. Hermione cleared her throat and the girl almost jumped out of her skin, dropping the book she was about to steal: The Tales of Beedle the Bard. A familiar classic.

Before the girl could run off, Hermione said, "if you really want that book, I have a copy I would be willing to let you have." The offer created a spark in the young girl's blue-grey eyes, but she was obviously still suspicious of Hermione and kept her distance- and silence. "How about you and me just talk? I'll get us some ice cream at Florean Fortescue's," Hermione cajoled. A bright smile overtook the girl's wary features and she nodded vigorously. "Okay, let me pay for these books and we'll be off. Can you put that book back please?" Hermione asked, giving the girl a kind smile and heading off to the register.

After she paying for her spoils, Hermione turned around to find the girl, but she was no where to be seen. Thanking the man at the register, she headed to the back, and she found the girl curled up with a book in a chair reading- oblivious to the world. This brought a grin to Hermione's face. She hoped one day her children would love books as much as she did and as much as this girl did. Storing away the thought for later, she quietly asked the girl if she was ready to go. The kid practically fell out of her chair to run and put the book back in its place and get ice cream.

Making their way down Diagon Alley, Hermione decided then was the best time to ask the child questions. "So, what's your name?" she probed. She had seen first hand how skittish the girl was and hoped that very simple questions didn't scare her away.

In a tiny, barely audible breath she heard, "Rosalinda" in the girl's tinkling melodic voice. Rosalinda ducked her head and blushed, but Hermione could see the girl's eyes darting around almost imperceptibly looking for danger. What had the girl gone through to look like that?

"That is a very beautiful name. Can I ask who your parents are?" Hermione looked down at the young girl and smiled. However, she did not get the reaction she expected. Rosalinda looked like a deer caught in the headlights. All of a sudden she took off, running and weaving through anyone in her way.

Hermione acted instantly, chasing after the girl, calling her name, and telling her to stop- please. After two minutes, she lost track of the girl who expertly weaved her thin, small frame through the crowd, and after 10 minutes of searching, she came up short after searching every alley. She walked back to the bookshop, defeated. In a last ditch hope, she went up to the clerk and asked for him to reserve The Tales of Beetle and Bard for the little blonde girl. After she paid, Hermione flooed from the Three Broomsticks to the Ministry.

She took an empty elevator up to the seventh floor: Department for Underage Magic. She spoke with the young secretary who was about to leave for the day. "Miss?" Hermione called. "May I please leave a note for your boss? I found a little girl in Diagon Alley, with no parents near. She ran off after I began asking questions, and I could not find her" The secretary took down the girl's name and the situation and said she would make sure it got to her boss first thing in the morning.

Hermione almost sagged down on the floor of the elevator. She was emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted. Any adrenaline she had from her fight with Ron or chasing the girl had drained from her thin frame, and she was left again with emptiness. All she wanted was the warmth of her cozy bed, but instead, she flooed to Number 12 Grimmauld Place.

~oo00oo~

Draco had been up pacing for the last hour. After holing up in his office with hours of reflection, there was still too much about this law that he didn't know, and not knowing was killing him. He owled Granger an hour ago, but the owl came back with his letter still attached. He thought that someone so eager to set up another appointment would at least care to owl back. "It's not that late," he reassured himself for the 99th time since he sent the letter. "Ugh!" Draco groaned and collapsed onto his plush, green victorian sofa.

After no less than twenty minutes of whining, he got up to get ready for bed. Just as he tied the string to his black silk pajamas a light brown Barred owl tapped on his window with a note in tow. He raced to the window and gave the messenger five treats in his haste to read the note. The owl hooted happily and flew off into the night.

"Kingsley?" Draco mumbled when he read the letter. He had been expecting a reply from Granger, but Draco's face gradually grew to a full blown smile when he finished -it kind of hurt. Before he could pick up his quill to reply, another bird tapped on his window. "You better be Granger" he reflected, pushing open the window and letting the large grey owl in.

~oo00oo~

Harry warmly invited in his oldest friend knowing her day had been a rough one. He was quite used to Ron and Hermione's fights, not that he cared for them at all, and always kept a spare room for these events. "So, Ron didn't take to well to the Malfoy deal, huh?" Harry asked jokingly. Lucky for Harry, Hermione was in a bit better mood thanks to his presence and laughed back, "Oh, I don't know what you're talking about. He took it like a ray of sunshine."

"Sounds just like my lovely brother," Ginny quipped, walking in from the kitchen and she hugging Hermione. "One day, I would like the spare room to be for my child, not Ron's when he mouths off to Hermione. Men," Ginny scoffed. Noises of agreement coming from Harry and Hermione.

oo00oo

They conversed for another hour about Rosalinda, and Harry agreed to have the Auror Department help find the girl- or the girl's parents. The conversation slowly died down after a hour, and Harry and Ginny went off to bed, bidding Hermione a goodnight. Before she retired for the night, Hermione borrowed Harry's owl to write a quick letter to Malfoy to set up more time to talk.

 _"Mr._ _Malfoy,_

 _I_ _hope_ _we_ _may_ _continue_ _our_ _research_ _tomorrow._ _Ten_ _maybe?_

 _Sorry_ _for_ _the_ _late_ _message._ _Long_ _day._

 _-Hermione_ _Granger."_

"Looks good enough," Hermione yawned as she attached the parchment to the owl's leg. She stroked the owl lovingly, missing her familiar Crookshanks, and sent it on its way. Stripping off her pants and bra, she climbed into the guest bed and almost immediately fell asleep.

 _ **A.N./ Hello lovelies. Whether or not you even like this story, please review with criticisms, critiques, and comments. I love hearing from you all, and it helps me grow as a writer. Have a peachy day!**_


	4. The Blue Room

**_I still don't own Harry Potter, but enjoy!_**

Hermione was late. She was about done with her quick shower and only had enough time to brush her teeth and put on clean clothes if she wanted to get to work on time. And being late was not acceptable. "Looks like I'm not wearing makeup... or eating breakfast," she grumpily muttered. " _Stupid good dreams and comfy sheets_." Hermione Granger was not a morning person.

She barely said "Goodmorning, thanks for the room" to her hosts before she dashed through the floo. She barely made it to Kingsley's office by 8:00 where he was waiting for his report.

"Rough night?" the Minister questioned. A concerned frown on his face.

 _Do I really look that awful?_ Hermione put on her happy face despite her glum thoughts and replied, "Sadly. But I'm good now. Malfoy knew so much-"

The minister interjected, "before we get into that, I want you to know that Mr. Malfoy has been officially hired by your department. He is now assigned to this case. You will be his supervisor." Kingsley let out a breath after this. He knew of the rivalry the Golden Trio had with the Malfoy family, and he was prepared to calm Hermione down if need be. He hoped she knew that he would not send her back to a place where she was once tortured for something trivial. This was bigger than she knew, and urgent.

Her emotions were reeling from a rollercoaster ride. Hearing that Malfoy was in her department pissed her off, then him being on the case had her annoyed- she rather liked him as just a resource, but knowing that she was technically above Malfoy in rank had her skipping with childish joy. She shouldn't be so petty, she's an adult, but all she could think was _finally_.

"Okay. How shall we precede from here?" Hermione asked in a professional manner. She was all too used to seeing Kingsley, the person she fought in a war with, not Kingsley, her boss and the Minister of Magic.

"I'm sorry for interrupting. Please brief me on your findings." Kingsley prompted, surprised with Hermione's passive attitude.

That was all Hermione needed to go into a long monologue about the new information she collected yesterday. She was very anxious to hear someone else's thoughts on their progress, but Kingsley's comment was not what she was expecting.

"I think you need to spend the day researching at the Malfoy library. There are too many questions and holes to start and real work," he declared as he stood up. "Good work Hermione. We will talk again Monday with Mr. Malfoy. I'm sorry to cut the meeting short, but the last Deatheater trial is today and I need to open Wizemgot. I'll see you Monday," Kingsley said as he walked out the door, nodding goodbye.

Hermione let out a deep, frustrated breath and put her head down on the table. _Great. Just. Great._ After letting out another breath, she stood up and dragged herself back to her office to collect more files for reference today. Joseph caught her on her way out of the office. "Hey Hermione. How was the research yesterday?" he said with a grimace.

She chuckled, "Oh, it doesn't end. I'll be at the Manor until I can solve this."

This deepened the frown he already wore. "Why can't Malfoy bring the books here?" Joseph half whined.

"Because there are more books in his library than in the Ministry's."

His face lit up. He, like Hermione, had an immense love for literature, and if she didn't get out of there soon, he would beg her to join. _Malfoy wouldn't like that._ " _Since when do you think about Malfoy's feelings?_ " her mind reprimanded. "I have to get going. So much work to do. Have a great day!" Hermione shouted as she walked toward the lifts. The desperation on Joesph's face pulled at her heartstrings, but she couldn't let him come. He would piss off Malfoy more than her. Plus, he technically isn't on the case, and therefore is only allowed to deal with paperwork.

Draco was flipping through hundreds of books. He needed an example of just one law being broken. His nerves were growing, but he kept his face devoid of emotion. If Granger saw any trace of what he was feeling, she would question him. She couldn't question him, if what he was thinking was actually true, he needed her completely blind to it. She would probably tell Potty and Weasebee if she found out.

He shook his head to clear his worry filled thoughts. One of the only good things that came from being around the Dark Lord was learning to shut down his emotions. "They will use your emotions against you. Keep them hidden." His mother used to say. Maybe she knew how much he despised the death eaters once they invaded his life. Surely they would have tortured and killed him if they knew his feelings on the Dark Lord at the time.

A pop drew him out of his thoughts. "Ms. Granger is at the wards, Master," Dinky bowed.

"Thank you. I will fetch her. Will you please bring some earl grey and fruit to the library?" Draco asked the little elf.

"Of course, Master," Dinky replied before he popped back to his duties.

With a long sigh, Draco got up from his desk and strode down the long hall. He began to straighten his posture, tilt his head up, and made his face blank, but something stopped his routine when she saw Granger through the front windows.

She was leaned against the stone wall crying her eyes out. Rather like Draco, Granger was not one to show emotions in front of others, so it was obviously something that crushed her to have this happen.

When this ran through Draco's mind his immediate response was to walk away and give her a few minutes before he would walk out as his normal cold self, but for the life of him, he couldn't seem to walk away. He was a very intelligent man and knew that she would not take well to his presence if he walked over. So he stood, looking out one of his massive windows, and watched one of the strongest women he knew break down.

 _Should I owl someone? Is she fit to work? What could have caused this? Why here? Who did this to her?..._ ** _Weasley_**. The last thought had enough poison in it to kill an adult bear. Somehow, this disgust for the probable culprit drove Draco to walk out to Hermione.

He walked slowly, so she could detect his presence (she would probably kill him if he snuck up on her. He valued his life highly- he was the last Malfoy heir).

She immediately fixed her appearance and tried to rub the red out of her eyes. _She looks dreadful_. He merely held out his hand to her, so that she could walk through the wards (women should not have to cry outside- that much his mother taught him). He was surprised that she took it quickly, and her hand was very soft. "No. There is nothing attractive about Granger. She's a bushy haired know-it-all," he reprimanded himself and pretended to ignore the thoughts that followed, "but she does look adorable and her hand feels so nice." _I need a good lay_ \- Draco internally groaned.

Hermione was not happy. Last nights events finally hit her. Ron wasn't contacting her to apologize (and she sure as hell wasn't going to say sorry), and he was telling Harry this morning that he thought she was cheating on him. _How dare he accuse me cheating!_ she thought. But, the melancholy set in when she remembered that she loved him, and he didn't trust her. _How could he not trust me?_ Her emotions returned to anger.

"Ow," Malfoy yelped, pulling his hand from hers.

"I'm so sorry!" Hermione put her hands out in defense. "I was thinking and I got a bit carried away," she apologized.

"Bloody hell Granger! I try to be nice for less than a minute and there you go assaulting me!" Draco ranted. _And you people wonder why I'm so cold! I don't get harmed when I avoid feelings!_

Hermione was at a bit of a stalemate. She wanted to apologize further because it was her fault. But Malfoy always knew how to put a rude spin on everything and it infuriated her further. However, she decided that the logical option was neither an argument nor another apology. She already apologized nicely and starting an argument with him would not be a good idea. She wanted as nice of a work relationship she could get, since her personal one wasn't going so well. So, she carried on walking in silence, trying hard not to give in to her raging emotions. Today was not going to be a good day.

Draco was suddenly faced with a quiet Granger. Carrying on beside her, he internally fumed, "why wasn't she yelling back?" This felt like Hogwarts all over again, trying to get a rise out of the Gryffindor Princess. It does get rather lonely at the manor, and, although he would never admit it, he secretly enjoyed his witty arguments with Granger. She was the only person in school that pushed him intellectually. Pansy wasn't known for her brain, and Crabbe and Goyle might not even have had one. For now, he would act as if she hadn't strangled his hand, but he would bide his time. _The best revenge is unexpected_.

Hermione looked up at Malfoy to gauge his reaction. _Why was he smiling? Nothing good ever comes out of that smile._ She would have to be on her guard for the near future.

Upon entering the library, Hermione began setting her notes and supplies on an empty desk. She did not notice Malfoy stiffen behind her. As she continued to set up her work space, his fury grew.

"Why the hell is she touching **_my_** desk?" he glared. "I'll show her where she belongs."

Hermione felt a presence behind her a whipped around to find a glaring Malfoy. _What does he want?_ "Yes?" She said with a good amount of sass to show he was interrupting her.

"I didn't think you were blind and dumb," Malfoy drawled. Now towering over her, his pointed features only served to accentuate his pompous attitude.

"I am neither of those things!" Hermione growled back.

"Oh but you are. This desk is clearly mine," he raised an eyebrow at her challengingly.

"I'm sure your name is written on half of the contents of this mansion. Why does it matter?" She replied haughtily, placing a hand on her hip.

"Because in this manor, I am your boss and it is **_my_** desk," he pointed at the gold engraved DLM on the top drawer.

"Really? Because when you were hired onto my case, **below** me, I was imagining _you_ telling _me_ what to do," sarcasm dripping from her pursed mouth.

"Oh and you believe you can even access your research without _my library_ , in the house that you cannot get into without my _explicit permission_?" he said, knowing he now had the leg up.

"And you act as if there aren't **twenty seven** other families just like yours with libraries filled with the same books! You're merely closer!" She expressed incredulously.

"Such a small mind to believe any of them would let you in to their home! Oh and let's not forget the families like the Longbottom's and Abbott's that would be so much better _if only_ they kept their libraries of dark magic," Draco stepped forward, letting his height intimidate her.

"And because of that I should worship the ground you walk on? Malfoy kept evil books and has pure blood thanks to years of inbreeding," she mocked. "Oh how I wish I was him. I should let him get away with anything and everything." The whiny sarcasm was a bit childish, but he really did bring out the worst in her.

"Oh, unlike you? I'm a know-it-all that feels a need to be dominant in everything I do, even if it means pushing other people down," he mimicked her voice. Draco had no problem being childish if it meant he won an argument against Granger. He's a Slytherin after all, they would do anything to reach their ends.

"I do not! I am fair, it's not my fault that you insist on always flaunting your dominance and superiority!" Hermione was on the edge of really blowing up.

"Did you ever think for two seconds that maybe someone could be better than you at something? That maybe you have to rely on others occasionally, instead of insisting that you can do it better without anyone's help?" Malfoy practically screamed in her face.

This broke Hermione, but instead of bringing her to anger, it brought her to immense sadness. She quickly pushed past Malfoy and ran out of the library. She dashed into a room next to a spiral staircase at the end of the corridor and locked the door behind her. This is when she finally crumpled to the floor in sobs. _Why did Malfoy see her every flaw? Why did he have to point them out every time they were together? Why hasn't Ron contacted her?_ On the cold floor, Hermione lay, thinking of every flaw she possessed, every doubt she had, and reliving every fear she ever felt. She didn't even know where she was, but she didn't care. At the moment she was just a woman who had fallen apart.

Draco, on the other hand, had taken immense joy in removing Hermione's items from his desk after a battle won. He sat down and propped his feet up on his desk in triumph, thinking that he deserved a reward for his efforts. He conjured a glass of firewhiskey from his personal cabinet and grinned as he poured himself a half glass. Swirling the brown liquid around in the glass, he thought to himself, "the only thing that could make this moment better would be seeing Granger's face right now. And maybe her shining my shoes in a frilly maid's costume.." He shut down that thought quickly. But seeing her miserably accepting the truth did sound awfully fun, so Draco downed his drink in one, burning gulp, and set off to find the witch.

Quietly creeping down the hall, he listened for noise coming from any room. He was about to turn around and head towards the third floor when a muffled sob came from one of the many guest rooms. _Ah, she picked the Blue Room. Fitting_. He was about to open the door, but stopped himself. He muttered an incantation and with a wave of his wand, the door was invisible. Instead of seeing a worn down Granger, he saw an entirely different woman. This woman was in a pile on the floor, crying as if she lost everything. Even Draco couldn't help but feel guilty.

"Okay, that couldn't just be because of our fight," he thought, trying to validate himself. Still feeling a twinge of regret, he strode down to the library, intent on getting at least a little work done to distract himself from what he just saw. When he plopped down in his favorite comfy chair, he took in his surroundings. Hermione's stationery was laying haphazardly on a chair to his left, all the books he thought they needed were stacked on the table in front of him, with a tray of tea and fruit next to it on top of his personal notes on the case. Just in case Hermione decided to join him soon, he snatched his own notes and hid them in his desk. With that done, he sat back down to read an interesting journal he found earlier that morning.

After two pages of progress, Dinky popped beside him, "Does Master enjoy tea?"

"I haven't gotten around to trying it, but thank you, Dinky," Draco mumbled, engrossed in the article. Then a thought hit him, it was an odd thought, not many times in his life did he have thoughts like this. But, Draco (despite many other's apprehension) was trying to change.

"Oh, Dinky, can you please reheat the tea and take it to Granger in the Blue Room?" He requested, still not looking up from his occupation.

"Yes, Master," Dinky took the tray, bowed, and disappeared with a crack.

Draco ran a hand roughly through his hair, and attempted to refocus his mind on the task at hand. He still hasn't been able to figure out the process of reversing the spells. He knew the order of making them, but each law had a different combination of pure families attached to it. How was he suppose to figure out who put their blood into each one?

Hermione, on the other hand, was focusing on something entirely different. She needed to shut off her emotions. She should be working right now, not holing herself in a room to cry about her pitiable problems. She was the logical one, so she needed to focus solely on facts. _Ron doesn't trust her? Then why trust him?_ Malfoy pointed out some of her biggest flaws. So, she will work on them; become a better team player and ask for help a bit more. This mansion brought back horrible nightmares, and she was seeing Bellatrix around every corner. This predicament had her a bit stumped. They couldn't up and take the 100 something books they've compiled to a café, but she couldn't focus properly on her work when she was on edge. _Maybe put an extension charm on Malfoy's brief case and work at the Ministry?_

This forward thought motivated Hermione to get up, fix her appearance a bit in the mirror, and head back to the library. Before she turned the knob to leave the room, Dinky popped in with a tray of tea.

"Is Miss leaving?" the little elf asked with a hint of worry.

"I was about to go back to the library. Would you mind bringing the tea in there?"

Dinky nodded quickly, his potholder almost falling off of his head, and replied, "Yes, Miss," before disappearing.

Draco was getting no where. He was frustrated to no end. He needed to undo this law. Just then, his house elf appeared in front of him with the tea tray, cutting off his grumbling.

"Miss says to bring tea back here," Dinky bowed to his Master.

Draco was about to ask why, when none other than the devil herself, walked into the room. Looking much better than earlier.

 _ **As always, post a review if you see any errors/inconstancies or if you have any advice for the**_ ** _story. Thank you so much for reading. I hope you have a wonderful week. I hope your Halloween was amazing (I dressed as Draco and my boyfriend was Dobby)._**


	5. Firewhisky and Feelings

_**Sorry this has taken so long. Finals week is drawing nearer, so this isn't top**_ ** _priority. Once December 16th hits, this will update a lot faster. Promise. As always, I don't own Harry Potter or the character, only my plot line and the few new characters that come from my brain. Enjoy!_**

Hermione and Draco only fought four times. Once, because Draco told Dinky that the tea could be stronger, and the little elf began to hit his head on the table; Hermione didn't take well to this and lectured Draco about proper wording. The second argument was the worst. Hermione's 'incessant quill tapping' brought Draco to the point of screaming at her because he 'couldn't think passed the wretched sound of her insolence.' The third quarrel was short and ended in an hour of awkward silence because in Hermione's rant, she accidentally complemented Draco's thighs, and neither knew how to feel about it. The final fight was over in 20 minutes of bickering about the proper use of grey versus gray. Not so surprisingly, that was the most civil they have been towards each other since they met as children twelve years ago.

As Hermione walked out of the Manor's grounds, after a curt goodbye to Malfoy, she began to falter slightly. For the past five hours, she had distracted herself from questioning thoughts about her and Ron's relationship, but as the silence began to set in, her brain started whirling. Hermione then took a deep breath and told herself, "I need a plan. Not more worries. First: Do I sleep at our apartment?"

Once Granger left, Draco was alone to process what had happened that day. _What had happened? Granger broke down. Twice. And I didn't get much closer to reversing the law._ Admittedly, Granger made much more progress than him. Luckily any progress was shared. He now knows that they were passed in sets of three, hence why each law only had 9-10 families' blood in them. Together, all three laws had the blood of the entire Sacred 28- well the blood of 28 families and the minister (they still didn't know what happened to the Rosier and Fawley families). He did make a bit of headway when he found that the 'tags' (as Granger liked to call them) on the laws were traps that must be undone to remove the bill. _Lovely_.

 _What to do about Granger?_ A slightly uneasy feeling followed her name is his head. Deep **_deep_** down, Draco felt a bit bad for the woman. But what could he do? If he asked her what was wrong she would never answer him. Really if he offered her any kindness (which he wasn't keen on doing anyway) she would surely deny it thinking he was trying to trick her. He sighed. _Why do I even care? Live and let live. I'm sure she'll work it out._ With that comforting thought, Draco switched to a different worry. After he breaks the law, how does he get the child?

Hermione walked into her apartment, head held high, fully intent on not letting Ron push her out again. This was equally her apartment, and if anyone should leave it should be him. But, when she saw him Ron passed out on the couch with a firewhisky bottle beside him, she faltered. He was not a happy drunk, to say the least. Even though he would never hurt her physically, she still did not want to be in the same room as him. She quietly scurried into their bedroom and locked the door. When Hermione took a look around she gasped. The room looked like a tornado ran through it. Clothes were thrown about (mostly hers), a picture frame of the two of them when they got engaged was broken, and a fist-sized hole in the wall above their flipped bed. The bathroom was in no better condition with her toiletries strewn about and the curtain ripped off the shower.

This rose her temper. She spent the night in a house other than hers, was late for work, broke down crying in front of Malfoy, and then bickered with him the rest of their time together. She wasn't having a peaceful day and Ron throwing a tantrum was not helping her keep a level head. She then reminded herself that she already nags Ron to change his temper, so she cannot let hers get out of control. _Calm breaths. Just get your stuff together and go to the office to think things through properly._

The thought was broken by a loud bang on the bedroom door which caused her to seek cover in the bathroom, only to fall backwards and hit her head on the doorknob.

Everything went black.

Draco adjusted his robes as he set off for dinner with his parents in the West wing of the Manor. He had a love-hate relationship with family dinners. He loved his family- of course, but his parent's remarks to some topics had him internally cringing- glad they hardly left the Manor.

Upon entering the ornate dining room, his mother rose from her seat beside his father at the head of the table, and gracefully floated over to him with a letter in her manicured hand. "Draco, love, this came for you. It's from the Ministry," his mother wore a worried expression. Narcissa had feared that the Ministry would take Draco away since the war. They were all pardoned, but the worry remained.

"Thank you, mother," Draco said as he took the letter. He quickly read the scribbled note and distress fell upon his face. "I'm sorry Mother, Father, I must go to St. Mungo's. Something has happened to Granger and they need to speak to me."

"We can come with you, darling, explain that you didn't do anything wrong. You hardly leave the Manor!" His mother exclaimed, obviously upset.

"Narcissa, he doesn't need his parents. He didn't do anything wrong. Right Draco?" Lucius questioned. Draco's father had been much more relaxed than his mother after being pardoned. Lucius believed that he had gotten away with a great deal, so he was untouchable in his mind.

"Of course, father," Draco said coolly, "I need to leave now. The letter said it was urgent. Sorry about dinner, Mother." He kissed his mother's cheek before dashing out of the mansion.

Narcissa sat back down with a sigh, "what do you think the mudblood girl did this time?"

Lucius groaned, "I don't know, but she's wreaking havoc on our son again."

Upon entering St. Mungo's Draco was surrounded by ministry officials. Kingsley and Potter rounded on him first.

"Come with us. We need to know about Hermione," Potter said in a wanna-be-stern voice and lead Draco toward an examining room down the hall that all the doctors were frantically running in and out of.

While Potter was pulling files out of his brief case, Draco plopped down in the comfiest chair, obviously made for the doctor, and crossed his leg impatiently.

"Has there been anything different about Hermione lately?" Kingsley questioned. He looked rather out of place in his exotic robes and demanding stature sitting on an examination table with his legs dangling off.

"Considering I've seen her the last two days for the first time in almost 5 years, I cannot evaluate that," Draco drawled. _They act as if I actually know Granger._

"Malfoy, you've know her since you were twelve. Has she done or said anything out of character these past two days?" Potter was getting irritated. _Why would I be questioned when Potter knows more about her than I do?_

Malfoy sighed, "she was bawling today."

This peaked the Boy-who-lived's interest. "Okay, do you know why?" Potter asked. Eager.

"No clue, Potter. Do you honestly think she would tell me even if I did ask her what had her upset?"

Potter sighed and ran a hand through his scraggly, un-groomed hair. _Seriously, you are 22; one would think you could finally see a hairstylist._ Potter started up again, "Did Hermione say anything about Ron?"

 _So, I got it right._ "Afraid not. Is Weasel hurting her?" Draco asked, regretting immediately how menacing his question sounded. Potter noticed this quickly (unlike nearly everything else- _maybe he has an unhealthy obsession with me? Yes, that must me it)_.

"We never said that. Why do you suspect him? Why do you care?" Potty probed.

 _Ugh. The inferiors just don't understand._ Draco sat straighter with superiority reflecting in his features as he droned, "Oh Potter, you couldn't hurt her if you tried, and you're her only other friend besides Weaselbee. Now don't go taking that as caring for her. I have work to do, and I can't very well do my job with her blubbering."

This time Kingsley questioned him in his deep, authoritative voice even Draco was a bit afraid of. "Draco, was Hermione skittish, jumpy, or afraid when you saw her last?"

This caused Draco to flinch when he thought about the daily occurrences of her jumpiness, and how that had put him in multiple lock-locking jinxes. "Granger has been very on edge. Any thing that scares her she draws her wand at, but that could be the war's affect." He was beginning to get hungry and irritated with questioning; now he's going to get dinner heated up which is never quite as good. "Can I go now? Honestly, despite Weasel's anger management issues, he could never lay a hand on Hermione. She would kick his arse before he touched her," Draco said, exasperated.

Potter glanced over at Kingsley, who gave him a small nod. "Okay, you can go after one last question. Ron is claiming Hermione is cheating on him with you. Are you in a romantic relationship with Hermione Granger?" Potter asked in a dull voice while reviewing papers.

Draco burst out laughing at the incredulous question. Kingsley and the-boy-who-wouldn't-die were staring at him as if he had never laughed before. Still chuckling he answered, "Oh Potter, that's hilarious. Of course not," and continued to laugh as he walked out the door.

Before he made it out if the hallway, he peeked into a room all of the nurses were rushing in and out of. Granger was there, lying on a bed with IVs and a tube in her nose. Her head was wrapped with a bandage, and she was bleeding through it a bit. For reasons he will later say was only curiosity, Draco crept into the room to get a better look at her. She looked horrible. Worse than when she was crying her eyes out this morning. She had bruises on her face and arms, and dried blood on her forehead. He could see why they suspected Weasley of abuse. If he didn't know Granger better, he would arrest the man himself. Fluttering eyes interrupted his thoughts. Not wanting to get caught looking like he cared, Draco ran out of the room, into the lobby, and apparated back home the second he walked out the main doors. Hopefully she didn't see him.

Consciousness came upon Hermione like a swift brick to the head. She tried to fight her headache and open her eyes to find out where she was, and all she saw was a white streak and pale blue wall. She tried opening her eyes again and Harry was beside her saying something. She furrowed her brow, trying to listen to what her was saying. He looked worried.

A nurse was all of a sudden in her face with a light shining in her eyes. _Checking my pupils- brain damage?_ That was Hermione's worst fear, not having full function of her mind. She began to panic, and that's when the sounds around her came barging in. "Hermione, are you okay? Can you hear, darling? Did Ron do this to you? Does your head hurt? I'm going to get you another bandage. What is going on with Malfoy?"

"Shut up!" Hermione burst. "One question at a time. Thinking is a bit hard. And yes, I do have a headache. It's only adding to this mess."

Harry put his head down in shame. He knew he had a rather nasty habit of pushing people too hard when he wanted something.

"Okay, nurse..." She read the name tag of the cute, little old nurse who shined the light in her eyes, "Julie first."

A small, brunette woman, who could only be the nurse's assistant, took her vitals and Julie asked a few basic questions to test Hermione's awareness.

"Where are you, sweetie?"

"St. Mungo's."

"Good. What's your name?"

"Hermione Jean Granger."

"What is the last day you remember?"

"December 6th, 2003."

"That's today. Sounds like you're all in working order. You have a minor concussion and some bruising, but other than that, you're healthy. We want to keep you for a few more hours to make sure the damage isn't worse than we think it is. But, you will be out of here in 5 hours if all goes well. The doctor will come in soon and tell you what you can and cannot do for the next week, so you will heal properly. We gave you healing potions, but the brain is tricky business," the nurse explained sweetly before taking her assistant and walking out.

Harry slowly lifted his head to look at her. Seeing she wasn't angry anymore, he sat down on the edge of her bed and gave her a sheepish smile. "Sorry about the questions. You know how eager I get when I have a case. Forgive me?" he asked quietly.

Hermione sighed. She could never refuse an apology from her oldest friend. "Of course. Now what are your questions? Please keep them quiet. My head still hurts and loud noises don't help."

Harry got up and shuffled through papers sitting on a briefcase in the chair closest to her bed. He picked out a few that had sloppy notes scribbled all over them, and glanced at them as he faced her. He cleared his throat, Hermione flinched at the loud sound, and Harry began to apologize profusely. After she calmed him and told him it was alright, he continued with his questions.

"What happened when you got home from work?"

Hermione groaned and explained her relationship problems to her best friend. Doubts began to set in her mind as she recounted how the accident happened. _Maybe she shouldn't be marrying Ron. Even if he had never laid a hand on her, did she really want to marry someone who she was afraid of when he was drunk?_

Draco apparated onto the grounds and let out a long breath. He felt odd. Not the odd feeling before you puke from apparating when you're younger, but an emotional oddness. Seeing Granger in the hospital broken and hooked up to tubes provoked a feeling that he had never felt for anyone outside of his family before. He suddenly stopped. _What was that emotion? It was familiar, but slightly different. Was it? No. No. No. It's Granger. You can't feel that for her. It's wrong._

 _ **/This is getting a bit long, so if you're reading this story for a quickie romance, it probably isn't going to happen that way. I really try to stay true to the characters and original cannon- minus the last chapter. That said, it takes me a bit longer when I have to mold a story around characters instead of the other way around. Every chapter is written in terms of "what would Hermione/Draco do next?" Please review with any critiques or suggestions. I hope you're having a great week and this makes it a bit happier./**_


	6. Recovery

Chapter 6:

"Why? Why am I...

Concerned?" Draco thought in horror.

He could not start developing any sort of care for Granger. Caring always led to pain, and he had enough trauma for a lifetime and a half. _Shut down your emotions, don't let them use it against you. A soft spot for her will only leave you weak._

Draco walked into the dining room with his head swimming in thoughts of Granger.

Harry had a frown on his face. Hermione could feel his disappointment from her bed two meters away. It was obvious that he never understood the extent to which her and Ron fought. Hermione preferred to think that her and Ron fought because they were opposites, and opposites attract. There was no question that they didn't love each other. Just sometimes they didn't think the same way. _That's the only issue right? And no two people think the same, so we're just normal. Right?_

"Hermione, he's never hurt you, has he?" Harry's brow furrowed deeper, not believing this has been in front of him for years. These two people were his best friends. _How could he know them so little?_

Hermione sighed, "Do I look like the kind of woman that would let him get away with that?" When he only stared at her, she continued, "No, Harry, he doesn't nor does he abuse me. Now, I'm tired. Please release Ron. I swear he didn't hurt me. The banging just scared me." She laid back indicating she was done talking.

"This conversation isn't over," he warned as Harry walked out. He really needed to have a good talk with Ron. He knew Ron had always had the emotional range of a teaspoon, and Hermione and him fought, but he never imagined it to this extent. Ron needed to mature, and it was about to be expedited by Harry.

Hermione groaned. She needed a sabbatical from drama. She had enough drama fighting in a war, she didn't need more to resurface. But when does life ever follow one's wishes?

Draco finished his disappointing reheated, dinner of roasted quail and steamed vegetables, only to continue his rather dreary evening by laying in bed, staring a his ceiling, unable to sleep. Despite his usual aura of self assurance and superiority, Draco had acquired good amount of loathing for himself since the war. That night, he lay in between his imported silk sheets and relived some of his worst memories. When he had his eyes closed, visions of torture and death plagued his mind, and when they were open, his conscience reminded him that he didn't deserve his freedom, he was a bad person.

On nights like this, Draco usually took a large dose of dreamless sleep potion, and woke up back to his normal, pompous self. But on this particular night he felt like he deserved a night without sleep. After seeing Granger in the hospital, it reminded him of the last time he saw her bleeding and in pain. Knowing that (even though she was a know-it-all snob) he didn't do anything about her pain twice now cracked his wall he kept around his heart. Now Draco was not a masochist, he didn't like the crippling fear and regret that ran through him when these episodes happened, but occasionally he would tell himself he should have to remember everything he did. If anything, it was so he would learn from it. But, it was mostly guilt that had him wide awake all night reliving the Second Wizarding War.

A long ways away, Hermione was going through pages of paperwork for her release.

"Last one. Just sign here," the nurse pointed to a line in the middle of the page, and continued "to agree that any charges will be paid by either you or your insurance within 30 days time."

Hermione scribbled her signature before Julie was done explaining. She wanted out. It was now night time and she wanted to sleep in her warm bed at home and not on a hard hospital bed.

"I'll be back in 5 minutes with someone to take you home, dear," Julie said in a saccharine voice as she toddled away, swaying her pear-like body and strawberry blonde pony-tail.

Exhausted was the only word that described Hermione at the moment. She was mentally, physically, and emotionally tired. Her thoughts were slow and keeping her head up was a trying task. Just as she was about to give into her drooping eyelids, Harry was in front of her, taking her arm in his and helping her down from the bed.

"Ready to go home?" He asked, guiding her toward the entrance.

Hermione mumbled, "yup," and yawned, hardly keeping pace with his turtle-slow pace. "Thank you Harry," she said, and put her head on his shoulder, completely asleep.

"Well it looks like I'll be carrying you," Harry huffed, and picked her up bridal style. She was no feather, but he could keep his hold easily long enough to apparate to her apartment and get her into bed. After tucking her in, and watching her tiny snores for a minute, he walked out and softly shut the door behind him. Ron was in the living room, sitting on the couch, running his fingers through his hair repeatedly.

"We need to have a talk, Ron," he began. "Why would Hermione be frightened enough of her fiancé to lock herself in her bedroom and jump back in fear when you banged on the door?" Harry questioned with stern eyes train on Ron. His best friend crossed a line today, and he isn't going to stand for Hermione ever being afraid of a man she's suppose to love and trust.

Ron finally looked at Harry, remorse in his eyes, and whispered, "I never knew she was scared of me. I just thought we were bickering like usual. I didn't notice how bad it's gotten." He groaned and covered his face, shame written in his features, "I never wanted to hurt my Mione. Never."

"So accusing her of cheating wasn't intentional? Drinking yourself blind wasn't intentional? You may not mean to hurt her physically, but you break her down emotionally. What has she done to deserve that?" Harry grew increasingly angrier, his last sentence near shouting.

This angered Ron. How dare someone accuse him of trying to hurt Mione's feelings? Especially his best friend. "I didn't think! Okay? I was hurt. She was working with Malfoy! He has everything I wanted when I was younger. Mind me if I had a bit of resentment for the git and took it out wrong."

Despite being able to see where Ron was coming for, he knew not to let that excuse his behavior. He got up and made his way toward their fireplace. "That's still no reason to hurt her like that. You need to shape up. Hermione deserves better," Harry said flatly before flooing back to his beautiful wife who was probably waiting for gossip.

"I hope she can forgive me," Ron breathed and fell back onto the couch.

Hermione woke up content. She could tell by the perfect softness that this was her bed. She was warm and felt exponentially better than yesterday, physically that is. Worry ate away at her thoughts, but that could never outshine the beauty of waking up in one's bed after a horrible few days. She could see that someone, probably Harry, restored the room from its former state of chaos.

Hermione quietly got up and crept into the bathroom for her morning routine. She knew Ron would be listening for her to get up on the other side of the door to apologize profusely, and she needed her thoughts in order before the onslaught began. She locked the door, then proceeded to take a long, relaxing shower. The hot water washed away not only her dried blood from the previous day, but the doubt she held in her mind. She would give Ron another chance, but just one.

Draco's morning was quite the opposite of Granger's. With no sleep and depressing thoughts plaguing his head, he was a bit grumpy. Yes, it was all of his own doing, but he reserved the right to mope.

"Dinky!" He called out.

The little elf popped into his room. "What can Dinky do for Master Draco?" he squeaked and bowed.

"Make me some milk tarts, and bring them up here with some tea, please," Draco declared while scanning through his closest for something comfy, yet classy to wear.

"Yes, sir," Dinky replied before apparating presumably to the kitchen.

"Screw it," Draco muttered as he shut the closest, picked up a book next to his bed and plopped back into bed. Mother and Father don't come to my wing of the Manor, so they can't yell at me for staying in my night clothes today. So, he lay in bed reading a book about pure blood law in nothing but his silk pajama bottoms.

Breakfast was glorious compared to his reheated dinner. With that bit of happiness, he decided it was about time to leave his room for the day and head for the library. He finished Blood Laws volume 1 and needed the second volume to understand exactly how the blood was donated to secure the law they're trying to break. Upon entering the library, he got a surprise he was not expecting for his lazy day.

"Malfoy, can you please put a shirt on?"

After Hermione's shower, she ventured out of her room knowing quite well what was going to happen.

"I'm so sorry, Mione. It was stupid of me to over-react. I never wanted you to get hurt. You can't imagine how scared I was when I finally got that door open," Ron pleaded, all in one breath, as soon as the door cracked open.

Hermione put on her stern face, she needed him to understand that she was done putting up with his temper. "Ronald, your temper tantrum landed me in the hospital. You spread rumors that I was cheating on me, and you destroyed our room. Do you honestly think I'm going to sweep all of that under the rug because you're sorry. You have a history of being distrustful and hot headed. This is your last shot Ron. I'm not going to keep putting myself through all of this for a man that wouldn't change," she kept direct eye contact making sure he knew she was serious.

Tears began to pour from his eyes, and he dropped to his knees. "You want to leave me?" he mumbled through tears.

Hermione was torn. She wanted to be angry that he just broke down which makes her want to give in and say she'd never leave. But she couldn't lie. Not with a marriage soon.

"Ron," she said a bit softer, "I don't want to leave you. But I need to do what is best for myself. I love you. But if you keep up this behavior, I cannot stay with you."

He looked up at her with puffy, red eyes that were requesting an embrace. Reluctantly, she gave in, and allowed him to wrap his arms around her. "I will give you every thing I can. I don't want to lose you," Ron whispered into her neck, burying himself closer to her.

If she said she didn't think this was one of the sweetest things he's ever said, she would be lying. It melted her hard heart a bit, and she whispered back, "please don't make me." They stood like that for a few minutes until Hermione took charge again. "You need to go to work. You're late. And I need to go to the Manor to get more research done," she commanded, leaving Ron's arms.

A frown appeared on Ron's face. He just got her back. He didn't want her anywhere near that git Malfoy. "Do we have to?" he whined, using his best puppy dog face.

Little did Ron know, this didn't help his cause. "Yes, we have to," Hermione gritted through her teeth. This is what she was afraid of- she shows forgiveness and he thinks everything is peachy. No make-up sex for Ronald Weasely. "We have bills to pay! If you don't work, how do you think you're suppose to pay for an apartment, food, and that damn firewhisky you like so much!" She was tired of his immaturity. Just because you say you're sorry doesn't mean that everything is rainbows and butterflies.

"I am going to work, and you better too. We will talk when we get home. You need to know where your priorities lie. Good day, Ron," Hermione said shortly, and grabbed her purse on the way out the door. She needed to go to Diagon Alley to find a book that Malfoy didn't have, so she used that time to clear her mind of Ron.

It worked exceptionally well. She was so calm, she almost missed the same little blonde haired girl at the back of Flourish and Blotts. Trying to not startle the girl, Hermione crept quietly toward her. Rosalinda noticed Hermione all too soon, and took off, book in hand, toward the entrance. Hermione scrambled after her, determined to know why such a young child was alone.

Rosie was very clever for a girl of only 6 years, and rerouted Hermione to believe she was going into Knockturn Alley, when she actually took a sharp left turn and hid in a very narrow alley. However, the child did not understand that she was trying to out wit not only the smartest witch of her age, but a war hero. Hermione saw the move, and pretended to fall into the girl's trap. She used this time to tell a stranger to floo the auror's while she has the girl trapped.

Rosalinda was listening very intently to make sure she was not followed, and after 10 minutes of hearing no sounds like that of the stranger who followed her, she scooted out of her hiding place. She did not expect to have two furor's in front of her, that boxed her in. There was no escape.

"What is your name?" said the stout, balding man in aurora robes. He looked fairly kind, and she figured she could use this to her advantage.

"Rosalinda," she whimpered, looking through her eyelashes. She gave him her best pout and could tell it was beginning to work.

"Where are your parents?" he asked in a softer tone, but not wavering his towering stance.

"Mum isn't that far. I just wanted to read my book, but that woman chased me," Rosie squeaked in a frightened tone. Everyone always believes the kid.

"Who is your mother?" the taller, bright blue-eyed aurora butted in. This aggravated Rosalinda. Mummy always said to never tell anyone where they lived or their family name. It was too dangerous.

While this was going on Hermione was studying the child. Bright blonde hair. Shining grey-blue eyes. Small, pale frame. Delicate heart shaped face. An air of superiority. She couldn't help but imagine this kid could be Malfoy's spawn. They looked so similar, right down to the perfect posture. This thought began to turn the cogs in Hermione's brain. She needed to see Malfoy. She had the book, now it was time to see where this girl came from, and Hermione was willing to bet her entire Gringotts vault that it had something to do with him.

Rosalinda was not happy that the men were not leaving her be. They were not falling for her perfect pout or puppy-dog eyes. The woman was giving Rosie a knowing look. She must have figured something out, and that did not bode well for Rosalinda. Knowing that if the truth could come out her mummy could be hurt, she did the only thing she knew to do. She ran. Unfortunately for her, she had never learned to outrun a trained aurora, and was quickly caught.

Upon the light bulb going off in Hermione's head, the kid ran. Luckily, a 6 to 7 year old had nothing on an auror, and they picked the girl up quickly. Turning to Hermione, they said, "we are going to take her to the Ministry's Child Service Department. Thank you for reporting this. We will contact you if we need any more information." With those kind, departing words, they pulled out a business card, and portkeyed away. _So much for finding out who she is. Directly. Looks like Malfoy Manor is next stop._

Hermione already planned on going to the Manor to research, but now she had even more incentive. Malfoy must know of this little girl. She was sure.

A new elf greeted Hermione upon her arrival at the out wards of the Manor. Instead of Dinky, there was an equally small, but more robust and demanding elf waiting for her.

"Miss Hermione? Spotter heard Miss be in hospital. No come today," the elf said suspiciously.

"Nice to meet you Spotter. I was released last night. I feel much better now. I have a book that Malfoy wants, and I need to use the library," Hermione informed the little guy who was still eyeing her as if she was going to destroy his home.

"Come Miss Hermione. Spotter take to library. Would Miss like tea?" Spotter asked as he held his hand out for her to take.

"Yes, please," she said as she grabbed his rough hand. "His had is very knobbldey. Is that a word?" she thought, but was interrupted by the crack of apparation that took them into the Manor.

Spotter quickly released her hand upon entering the library. "I gets tea, Miss," he said, popping away to the kitchens.

Hermione groaned and fell back into a plush chair. She opened up the tome she bought an hour prior and began to scan for anything useful while waiting for Malfoy's arse to get up.

After a half hour of reading, the door creaked open, Hermione had a witty comment at the tip of her tongue about how Malfoy was like a princess, but it got stuck upon seeing him. He was obviously distracted by thoughts as he meandered into the room. But the biggest shock was his lack of clothing. He was bumbling about with no shirt on and a light pair of silk sleep pants.

Hermione always expected that Malfoy was slim, but not muscular. How much muscle do you build sitting on your hind end all day, or playing a sport sitting the entire time? Apparently more than she realized. He was not super muscular, but he certainly had enough tone for her thoughts to slow for a bit. _It seems Malfoy isn't so adverse to getting off his spoiled behind as once thought._

Hermione quickly remembered that she was still engaged and this was _Malfoy_ , so she requested, "Malfoy, can you please put a shirt on?"

 ** _I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

 ** _/Thank you all for reading, finals are nearing and I've been going through a bit of writer's block, but I hope you enjoyed it. Comment with corrections or musings. Have a fantastic day./_**


	7. Breakfast

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters. I want to say sorry for the extremely late upload. I enjoyed my Christmas break a bit too much ;)_**

{{First scene written with _Wasn't Expecting That_ by Jamie Lawson on- just in case you want to hear what I was hearing}}

Malfoy's reaction was priceless. He stumbled backwards, almost falling on his arse, with a look of shock on his face. His wide eyes soon turned to slitted, angry ones. "What the hell are doing here?" He sputtered, righting himself. However, Hermione was laughing so hard she couldn't even see his face, let alone hear his voice. "You-you...you," Hermione tried to get out, but her thoughts sent her into another fit of giggles.

"Well I see you recovered all too quickly," Draco murmured and then a thought came to him. _She wants me to put on a shirt? Well obviously it disturbs her in some way, so let's see how far I can push her._ He wiped his face of anger, and instead put on his infamous smirk. "So, having my shirt off gets you all hot and bothered, Granger?" he asked loud enough for her to hear.

She began laughing even harder which only flustered him further. "You want something to laugh at," he mumbled with a sneer, "I think this will do." Draco whispered an incantation, and with a wave of his hand, a pig's tail began to grow out of Hermione's pressed pants, and her laughter turned into snorts.

She immediately stopped laughing and glared at Malfoy over her pale snout, which caused him to fall into the nearest chair cracking up. Hermione was not happy at being the butt of a joke, so she sent a quick hex his way, and he suddenly disappeared. A second passed and an angry white ferret reared its head to glare at the person who was snorting up a storm on the floor.

Draco was not a happy ferret. His current state brought back buried school memories of the most embarrassing moment of his life, and the pig woman in front of him was laughing at his pain again. So, with no wand, and a tiny rodent body, he did the only thing he could think of for revenge. He bit her. Her wrist to be exact. She squealed in pain, and he squeaked with joy.

He hardly noticed his return to humanity, because he was howling with laughter, but he did notice a very warm Granger leaning against his back shaking and hardly breathing. Many soft snorts touched his neck as he realized that Granger was laughing _with_ him. _Granger and I are laughing together._ He turned and looked at her to find her face just as red as her pig snout and a magnificent smile on her face.

"I haven't had that much fun in ages," she said, a grin still shining up at him. "Thank you, but could you please reverse the," she waved to her face and tail, and then gave him a smirk that looked rather odd with her pork-ish features.

Draco pretended to contemplate the situation and frowned, "I don't see anything wrong," and winked after a second to let her know he was joking. When she scowled unconvincingly, he chuckled and waved his wand. Her nose shrank and returned to its normal tanned, upturned nature.

She couldn't help but give him another lopsided smile when he was nice enough to actually turn her back. They both stared at each other for a few seconds to memorize the good moment before Hermione broke it to remind him that they needed to do at least a bit of research.

They both reluctantly got up from the floor and grabbed a book to read before curling into a chair across from the other. They sat like that, quietly reading, occasionally writing something down or commenting a piece of information to the other, before returning back to companionable silence, as hours flew by. Only when the ornate grandfather clock by the entrance chimed 2 o'clock did either of them even move.

Upon hearing the time, Draco realized just how hungry he was. "Hey Granger," he quietly called, jarring her from her reading, "what do you want for lunch?"

Granger groaned and stretched, setting her book down on the dark oak side table. "Mmmmm. I don't know. Maybe pancakes? I have a strange craving for them," she yawned and drew her legs closer.

"Breakfast for lunch?" Draco questioned. His parents would never hear of having a meal at an improper time. He had never had breakfast for anything other than breakfast, and the idea of breaking this previously unknown tradition intrigued him. He smiled at the idea of his mother seeing him, still in his pajamas, eating pancakes for lunch. "Dinky?" he called out for the little elf.

"Yes, Master Draco?" Dinky appeared.

"Can you please make Ms. Granger and I two plates of pancakes and earl grey?" he asked the elf, then turned to Granger, "what sides would you prefer?"

Hermione was so shocked that Malfoy actually ordered what _she_ wanted that her response was delayed by a few seconds while she composed herself. "Strawberries and creme for the pancakes and possibly fried potatoes on the side?" she asked, unsure of overstepping his newfound kindness.

"What the lady says. But just lemon and sugar on mine, with a side of blueberry pie," Malfoy smiled at Dinky. "That will be all, please." With that, he turned back to his book and mumbled, "mother would have a conundrum," before Dinky popped away, hiding a slight giggle at his Master's words.

"Thank you, Malfoy," Hermione uttered, giving him a small grin before quickly picking back up her book. _It felt very odd thanking Malfoy._

"My pleasure," Draco grinned at Granger's obvious awkwardness toward his kindness. _It felt very odd to be thanked by Granger. Odd, but good. Get back to reading. God only knows how long it will take the house elves to realize that pancakes can be made at any time._

A half an hour passed, and Hermione was beginning to get very hungry. "It doesn't take half an hour to make pancakes," she grumbled to herself, as she readjusted into a more comfortable position in her chair.

"They probably spent 20 minutes debating whether not to even make them," Malfoy sighed, and noisily flipped a page in his book.

"Why?" Hermione asked, curious as to why there would be a debate of the else's master's orders.

"It's simply never been done here. It would be very improper to have the incorrect food at a meal, and they probably don't know how to handle such a request."

She leaned toward Malfoy with intrigue and asked, "so, you've never had breakfast at any other time than the morning?"

"No," Malfoy said simply and looked at her with a questioning face, "why? Is it normal among muggles?"

"Not necessarily normal, but it isn't taboo. It's a bit of a treat, a fun break from tradition." Suddenly, her smile grew, "Malfoy? How would you like to have lunch with me Saturday?"

Draco was shocked. Hermione Granger just asked him to lunch. Out of principle, he would usually say no, after all, she usually is an annoying chit. But, today they got on very well. Plus, if he was to be working under her for an indefinite amount of time, it would be best to be on better terms with the woman. But Draco couldn't miss the opportunity to pick fun before he agreed, so he asked with a smirk, "Are you asking me on a date, Granger?"

He had never seen her more flustered in his life. It was probably because she (and he) just remembered that he was still very shirtless, and his question was assuming she would go behind her fiancé. Together that equated to a very blushing Hermione Granger.

"No," Granger shook her head so hard it could have fallen off. "Just friends," she continued, wide eyed, realizing her mistake. "I just wanted to show you something I think you might enjoy."

"And what is that?" he asked, his smirk growing, while his mind was reeling from Granger calling them _friends. Could I be friends with her? Would I want to? Should I say no? It would make for a very good reaction, but she also just got out of the hospital_ Draco thought to himself.

"Popcorn and a film," Hermione replied weakly. She was almost sure this was a bad idea at this point. She called _Malfoy_ her friend, and she sounded like she was asking him on a date. It was sure to make his inevitable 'no' even more degrading to her ego.

"A film? Like those talking pictures from muggle studies?" Draco inquired.

"Yeah," Hermione said, bracing herself for his denial and how utterly stupid she would look for even thinking this was a good idea.

"Maybe. I have the day off because I have a date. But I'll see if I can squeeze you in," Draco responded with only a slight hint of superiority. He couldn't be his fully pompous self because A. He was wearing pajamas after noon (looking like a commoner) and B. Her was raised (and grew up a bit to understand) that a recovering woman should be handled lightly. Plus, he secretly reveled in knowing the 'maybe' would kill her more than a straight 'no'. He enjoyed bringing Ms. Know it All back down to everyone else's level.

Meanwhile, Hermione was pleasantly aggravated by Malfoy's answer. On one hand he was polite enough not to completely shut her down. But she was annoyed by his vague answer. Now, she would have to prepare as if he would actually show, knowing that he probably wouldn't. Before she could say a snarky remark that would ruin their very good day together, Dinky popped in with a heap of pancakes.

"Lunch for Master Draco," he said as he set the large tray down on the coffee table and bowed.

"Could you take this to the kitchen table, and we will go down there to eat it?" Malfoy asked the tiny elf.

Dinky seemed to be shaken up by Malfoy's question. Hermione couldn't figure out why the little guy seemed so startled by a request to eat in a kitchen, when a few seconds later it dawned on her, and she mimicked Dinky's gaping expression.

"Y-y-es, Master," Dinky squeaked out. He bowed and took the tray with shaking hands, and apparatus away.

"Granger, you're going to catch flies," Draco snickered. She immediately shut her mouth, but her wide-eyes were still locked on him. "Now that we've gotten that settled," he drawled, turned his back to her, and began to saunter out of the library, leaving a very bewildered Granger behind. "Come on," he called out behind him, and he could see her snap out of her thoughts, and he turned his head back as she rushed towards him. _She really needs to learn proper manners._

 _"_ You do know what you just asked of Dinky. Right?" Granger implored.

"Of course, unlike my parents, I believe in getting to know the help. Now, unless you want them to hear us, I would hush. If my mother found us walking to eat in the kitchen with me only wearing pants, she would have many uncomfortable questions, so hurry along and keep quiet," Draco ordered. He actually was having lunch in the kitchens because it was the last place his mother would look for him, and he was having a decent day, and didn't want her constant worrying to distract him. He loved his mother dearly, but she would scare away Granger, and he couldn't afford that when they were making good progress today. It was also pretty fun to shock Granger. She seemed to think him a walking demon, and it was entertaining to show her how much he'd changed. He wasn't saying he was an angel by any shot, but he wasn't a death-eater-wanna-be with virtually no redeeming qualities. "Now, I am an Ex-Death Eater with a few redeeming qualities," he thought with a smirk.

Hermione was also pondering the current situation. If someone had told her that she would be having a better day with _Draco Malfoy_ than her fiancé, she would have had them checked at St. Mungo's. But there she was, having a decently good day with her old childhood bully. Now, she was still suspicious. No way was Malfoy being nice unless it was benefiting him. _So, I'm going to find out exactly what the ferret is up to. After pancakes, of course._

The kitchen was beautiful. Probably as large as half the Granger household, and filled with bustling house elves, all wearing matching potholders and various items of children's clothing. They all stopped to greet the pair as Hermione and Draco sat down at a small table, set for two, in the corner of the kitchen next to the oven (where there was some delicious smelling rolls baking- Twittie said she would give Miss Granger the recipe later.) Hermione couldn't help but let her eyes wander over the beautiful white cabinets (set low for the elves) and the butcher's block countertops. She would never admit it, but she wanted this kitchen, just not the evil house. Finally, the arrival of heaps of whipped creme drew her gaze back to the delectable meal in front of her.

"Enjoy," Malfoy said, politely, before he began to shovel pancakes and blueberry pie onto his plate, squeezing a lemon over his final, sugary product with a smile.

Thus began a very enjoyable meal. The pancakes were perfection. Creme homemade. The house elves were simply adorable; all greeting her and making sure her meal was up to Malfoy standards. She almost moaned in pleasure at the taste of the fried potatoes. They tasted just like the ones her mum used to make. Buttery.

"Thank you Malfoy, and thank you all for such a delightful meal," Hermione turned back to the elves and waved as she followed Malfoy back to the library. A series of squeaks, wide smiles, and frantic waves followed her out. _Today has really been a good day._

"So how much longer do you have to research, Granger?" Malfoy turned to her as they wandered up the wide staircase.

"Another few hours. As long as I'm home before 7," Hermione shrugged. She secretly didn't want to go home and face another fight with Ron, not that she would tell anyone that.

"That's delightful!" an elegant voice sounded behind them, and Hermione and Draco both whipped around at the same time to see Narcissi Malfoy. "Perhaps you both would like to join me for tea?" she said pleasantly, though promising interrogation.

 _Lovely,_ they both thought.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it; I've been on holiday break, and I appreciate your patience. Now that I have my groove back, there should be more to come. Have a fantastic day!/_**


	8. Meeting the Queen

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

"So, Ms. Granger," Mrs. Malfoy began. "What exactly do you do for a living?"

"I work for the Minister of Magic to remove old laws," Hermione said confidently, hoping that Narcissa would be happy with that answer, so she didn't have to tell her she's there to break specifically pure blood laws to the queen of the sacred 28.

"Interesting," the elder Malfoy nodded, then took a dainty sip from her tea cup. "And how exactly does this involve my Draco?"

If Hermione wasn't uncomfortable before, she was now. She had this talk with Ron's parents when they started dating. The 'what are your intentions' talk. She most certainly wasn't dating Malfoy, and she had no intention to. "He has more resources than I do on the current law, and he's an expert on it," Hermione explained.

Mrs. Malfoy looked her over skeptically. She was about to ask which laws her son could possibly be an expert on, when the man himself finally spoke.

"Mother, Granger cannot tell you any more about this, for her safety and mine," Malfoy calmly intervened Hermione's interrogation.

This did two things. First, Hermione swung her head around with an gracious smile on her lips, thanking Malfoy for saving her. Second, Narcissa's expression changed completely. Worry etched itself in her regal features as she looked at her son, dripping with concern.

"Are you in danger, Draco?" Mrs. Malfoy frowned. "Maybe you should tell the ministry there is no more you can do for them. They just can't seem to understand that you didn't want any part of-" she started to fret when Malfoy interrupted her gently.

"Mother, I'm fine, no one is out to hurt me unless a select few people figure out what law we're trying to break. I only work with Granger, and she understands," he comforted.

That took Narcissa's mind off her son being in immediate danger, but her skepticism turned to Hermione. "Ms. Granger, do you understand, or is my son just trying to smooth things over? I don't want him harassed anymore for a choice he hardly even had," Mrs. Malfoy said, giving Hermione a stern look. If there was one redeeming quality of the Malfoy's it was that they were incredibly protective over each other.

Hermione had to put on her best face for her next words, "I wouldn't let anyone harass your son Mrs. Malfoy." Draco snorted softly, but Hermione ignored him and continued, "I believe that Malfoy had a fair trial, and agree with Wizemgamot's opinion that he was working primarily out of preservation of himself and his family."

Still with a stern look, but a slightly softened tone, Mrs. Malfoy questioned, "Ms. Granger, a work relationship such like yours and my son's also has a personal level. You work quite closely for hours, I presume. What are you _personal_ opinion on my son's past grievances?"

This required Hermione to think quick. She had a feeling that Mrs. Malfoy could see through any lie she could come up with, and she knew that Hermione was a muggleborn and wouldn't agree with everything. But, she needed to come up with an answer that could still grant her access to the Malfoy library. So, she decided on carefully constructed truths. "I personally believe that on the side of the war he was on, I would have done _nearly_ the same as Malfoy to save my family," Hermione replied, tearing up at the ending. She continued in a bit of a rough voice, "I have done regrettable things to save my parents and myself. Why would I judge your son for doing the same, just in his own way?" Hermione was surprised that she actually believed what she said. A weird feeling encompassed her chest, something she'd never felt for Malfoy before: Empathy.

Narcissa eyed the girl speculatively. _She seems very competent, for a Mudblood. Sincere intentions She obviously doesn't sympathize with our beliefs, but she is keeping Draco busy, and he's been restless before the last week. Oh, and why isn't Draco wearing a shirt, or proper attire for that matter? I hope he is not having relations with the Mudblood girl. Oh dear, I hope she doesn't have some mistaken notion that she is at a high enough stance to even consider courting my son. Mention Astoria._ "Draco, how is Astoria? I am quite sure she would not fancy knowing you are improperly dressed around Ms. Granger," Narcissa chided.

Draco groaned internally. He knew that his mother would question his lack of proper attire, but he hoped she would not bring up Astoria. Astoria Greengrass was his latest 'girlfriend', if he could even call her that. His loving mother decided to take it upon herself to find him the 'perfect pureblood wife'. Draco agreed to go on dates with her to see if he found her attractive, and she was a pleasant girl, but something just didn't feel right. She was agreeable, elegant, and was well read, just as any traditional pureblood wife was, but she lacked a certain fire. She would hardly ever stand up to Draco, and when she did, he knew that it would take five minutes of arguing to wear her down. Wasn't a wife suppose to be a companion? Someone to do things _with._ Astoria was a person that would applaud from the sidelines. Luckily for Draco, his father hadn't drawn up a marriage offer to the Greengrass's yet, so Draco had more time to find another. But for now, he needed to get his mother's mind off of Astoria.

"Astoria is well, mother. I'm sure that she would not care about my appearance in front of Granger. She understands our past," he replied in a bit of a clipped tone. It aggravated him that his mother brought up Astoria in front of Granger, giving her material to use against him, and implied that Granger and him were doing anything remotely sexual.

"I was just looking out for your lovely girlfriend, Draco. Now, I'm sure you both have a lot of work to do, so I'm going to go back to the garden," Mrs. Malfoy announced as she lifted herself out of her chair. Once up, she took a step to head to the gardens, stopped, then turned her head to say, "Draco, do get dressed this morning," before waving the two adults in an obvious dismissal, and heading out the french doors to her roses.

"I've never had someone just send me away like that before. I was as if I was the maid to the Queen, and I lingered too long," Granger grumbled as they trudged up the stairs back up to the library.

"That's her style. I suggest you don't hope for anymore of her," Draco muttered darkly as he opened the library door for Granger. As she wandered back to their place before their late lunch, he called out to her, "I'm going to put on _proper attire_ ," he said, imitating his mother, much to Granger's amusement. "I will be back."

Malfoy's imitation of his mother was spot on, no doubt from years of practice, and it helped relieve pent up frustration knowing that he did not enjoy the chat anymore than she did. _Now, Malfoy is with Astoria? Isn't she Daphne Greengrass's younger sister? Sounds like a match made in pureblood heaven. Malfoy seemed a bit peeved his mum brought it up. Is Astoria suppose to be his secret? Or does he not even like her? Arranged marriage doesn't seem to far fetched for the Malfoy's. They're as old fashioned as anyone can get. I am surprised he's not with pug-nose Parkinson, though. Now that's a thought. I think the Malfoy's would like_ ** _me_** _more-_

Hermione immediately ended her train of thoughts. There was no way that she would allow herself to even think of being apart of the Malfoy family. They would rather have their son kiss Harry Potter than to imagine Hermione 'Muggleborn' Granger in their lives on a regular basis.

Malfoy's entrance broke Hermione out of her self-deprecating thoughts, and she quickly picked up the nearest book to seem as if she hadn't spent the past 10 minutes thinking about his relationship. He too appeared to have been lost in thought as he didn't notice her scramble, and he sat down in his chair without a comment and a blank look on his face.

Draco was not liking the turn his day took. He had kept Astoria a secret from most of the Wizarding society thus far, and he was displeased that word might get out. How was he to convince Astoria to have a mutual breakup when all eyes were on them? For all of her good qualities, the one Draco liked the most was her care, and he knew she would care enough about his feelings to let them both part ways peacefully. However, her love for being in the spotlight could very well overpower her good qualities. But, the more pressing issue was that this could damage both of them horribly. Her, for being with a deatheater, and him for the past that Witch Weekly will eventually dig up.

Finally coming out of his thoughts, Draco looked up to a very flushed Granger with her nose two inches away from a monstrous volume on child law. She was sideways in the arm chair with her back sunk down and her legs crossed up on the arm. Her hair was everywhere, it came out of the bun she had it in much earlier. It looked as if a quill was stuck in the side of her massive brown poof, and her usually pressed business attire was rumpled. A crease formed between her brows as she reread a passage. Her right foot bounced up and down rhythmically. _Fascinating. This is what a Granger looks like in her natural habitat._ Smirking at his thoughts, Draco turned to a nearby tome he had not yet finished combing through, and acted as if he had not been staring at Granger for longer than necessary.

The day passed quickly with both Draco and Hermione engrossed in book after book; Hermione fidgeting, Draco still as a rock, and both trying very hard to achieve a case that would change their lives. Once the grandfather clock chimed eight, Hermione reluctantly got up, stretched her sore back, and bid her companion goodbye. Well, goodbye until tomorrow.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it; I've been having a bit of medical troubles, so updates may not happen as often as I would like, but they will happen. Promise. Have a fantastic day./_**


	9. Astoria and Adoption

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Draco was up early. He slept surprisingly well, and wanted to get a head start before Granger disturbed his peace. This morning he was fully clothed to deter his mother from bringing up Astoria again. Once he has positioned himself in his favorite chair in the library, he picked up the last book he had been scanning through last night, and went back to skimming the boring text. He must have been reading for over three hours before soft humming broke his focus. When he looked up to undoubtedly ask Granger how she got in the library and then scold her for interrupting him with her off tune melody, he was met with a completely different woman. The woman he saw had her chocolate hair tied up in a perfect bun at the base of her neck, that allowed the large pearls around her neck to be the center of focus. Her robes were a pale blue in a flattering fit that showed off her slim waist that her hands were currently waiting on. Her complexion was fair and usually classically beautiful face was marred with anger.

"Astoria?" Draco greeted, puzzled. "How did you get in here? And why are you here?" He knew he sounded rude, but she interrupted him from important research.

"Not happy to see me? Or were you expecting Hermione Granger?" she growled. In truth Draco had never seen her so upset, and was both intrigued and a bit scared as to how this encounter would play out.

"I was not expecting Granger," he lied fluidly, "and it is not my happiness that should be questioned, but rather my focus. I was merely a bit displeased that my attention was broken from an important matter." Draco motioned for Astoria to take a seat across from him, and continued, "I'm sorry for my rudeness, now, is there something troubling you?"

Draco knew how to talk to irate women, it was almost a specialty. Like any wise man, he knew to apologize for nearly anything he could think may be the problem, and act concerned. In truth, he was still annoyed that she interrupted his research. At least Granger would either have valuable information to give or a good comeback.

Astoria huffed as she lowered herself gracefully into the armchair, "your mother has informed me about your dealings with Hermione Granger and I am not happy with the amount of time you have been spending with her. I am your girlfriend. I understand that you're on some little job-" Draco opened his mouth to tell her how very important this "little job" was, but she cut him off with a finger. "I know you well enough to know that this is important to you, but putting everything or everyone else off to the side is not okay." She paused to recompose her face into a stern mask as it had slipped into a loo of almost sadness. "Now, we need to discuss your being nearly naked with her yesterday," she said and her eyes bore into Draco's.

He sighed. _This is going to be a long discussion then._ "Do you know about the past Granger and I share?" he asked, and received a look that said 'Draco, everyone in the world knows about your petty childhood rivalry.' "Don't give me that look," he stopped her, "it's more complicated than just me calling her a Mudblood and her hitting me. We have always and will always do anything to get under each other's skin. I don't know why we do this and bicker constantly, but she always has the most entertaining reactions, and I'm sure she just loves showing me up. This has been going on since we were 11. It's not some underlying sexual tension, but rather a long winded rivalry. I guarantee she doesn't get anything out of seeing me shirtless besides jabs at me being 'pale as shining moonlight.'" Draco did a rather good impersonation of Granger at the end there and was too busy mentally congratulating himself to notice her actually enter the library until Astoria spoke.

"You must be Hermione Granger. Pleasure," Astoria said in a nauseatingly saccharine tone while getting up and offering her dainty manicured hand to a surprised Granger.

"Pleasure. You must be Astoria. I've heard a lot about you from Malfoy. He seems rather taken with you," Granger said, returning the sickly sweet gesture with a smile that looked genuine to anyone that did not know her.

Draco was stunned that Granger just lied out her teeth for him, but quickly recovered so that Astoria did not realize deception. "Granger, we have work to do. I don't need you telling Astoria any embarrassing childhood stories she hasn't heard yet. I'd like to keep some pride," he grimaced, more at the potential truth than the lie.

Astoria knew when she was being politely dismissed, and marked it down as something else that her and Draco needed to work on later. But, for the time being she settled for asserting her dominance, and giving Draco a rather lengthy kiss before sauntering away. It was not normally in her character to show affection so publicly, but she felt very threatened by Hermione's place in Draco's life at the moment. How was she suppose to compete with a woman that was the brains behind defeating the Dark Lord? Astoria knew that her boyfriend valued intelligence more than he let on, and who can stand a chance next to 'the brightest witch of her age'? Needless to say, Astoria Greengrass was not delighted as she sashayed out of the Malfoy library. The little bit of satisfaction that came from kissing Draco faded as she meandered back to the sitting room in the South wing of the manor where she would complain Narcissa, again.

Upon apparating home the previous night, Hermione Granger was greeted by a strange owl and an empty apartment. Choosing to address the official-looking barn owl first, she untied a rather thick parchment from its leg, fed it a treat, and plopped down onto the old couch in the front room. She sighed as she read:

"Ms. Granger,

The department has not been able to learn the parents of the young girl, Rosalinda, that you turned in the other day. We are not able to use truth serum on children, as the side affects could be dangerous, but we were able to learn that she is 6 years old, born December 7th, 1997. A maternal and paternal lineage test can be preformed, but only with consent of the legal guardian, and currently she does not have one known.

We would like to inform you that you have the option of temporary legal guardianship, if you so choose. Otherwise, Rosalinda will be held in a ministry orphanage until her legal guardian claims her.

If you have any questions, you can send them with the owl that delivered this message, or you can stop by any time at the department on the 5th floor, 3rd hallway on the left.

Regards,

 _Emily Aldridge_

Department of Child Services"

After five minutes of just staring at the letter, the front door slamming brought Hermione out of her trance. "Ron," she croaked, summoning a very worried fiancé into the living room. "I don't know what to do," she moaned and buried her head in her hands, on the verge of tears.

Ron knew how to deal with this Hermione. He sat down beside her and wrapped his arms around her, drawing small circles on her back, and whispering calming words. He knew it must be something pretty worrisome if this was her reaction from a letter. After a few minutes of mumbling comfort into her ear, he softly asked, "can you tell me what's wrong?"

By far the best moment of his week so far was the look on his soon-to-be wife's face when she peered up at him with glassy eyes and a small smile. She trusted and loved him. Putting aside his elation, he listened as she explained, "the Department of Child Services wants me to be the temporary guardian of a little girl I found in Diagon Alley. She was in the bookstore, but she ran when I asked her who her parents were. For some reason she wouldn't tell anyone. It's either me or an orphanage until her parents come. I can't let a kid be put in an orphanage knowing I'm the other option."

The news hit him like a sack of galleons. _Was he ready to be a parent, even temporarily? What happened to the calm life he had for the past three years? How would life change with a kid?_ She was looking up at him with a hopeful expression. She knew his temper, and he made a promise to himself after Harry left that he would reign his anger. He had to. He took a deep breath and said, "can we just think on this for the rest of the night? I don't know if I'm ready to be a parent, even temporarily."

When she agreed, he wanted to slump over and sigh in relief. But he knew it would be a long night. _A parent, a parent, a parent_ kept ringing through his head. _Oh Merlin._

Ron's panic was palpable. Hermione understood. This was a lot to ask of a person. Even she did know if she could be a parent, but what choice was there? How could she tell them no? It wasn't even an option.

So, Ron and Hermione stayed like that all night. Holding each other, and quietly freaking out about what tomorrow will bring. _Where would the kid sleep?_

After Astoria left the library, Hermione and Malfoy stared at each other with smirks on their faces, but Hermione's grew larger when she asked, "trouble in paradise?" At first, Malfoy seemed a bit afraid, then his evil little grin came out, and he replied, "how is it going with Britain's favorite Weasel?"

Deciding they were at a stalemate, Hermione went back to what she was actually here for, "I actually wouldn't be staying if you want to go run after your girlfriend." This drew a sneer from Malfoy, but before he could interrupt with a snide comment about her relationship, she trudged on, "I have something important that came up, so I might be taking leave for two days. But I do have a question for you. Why do you care so much about breaking this law?"

"I have my reasons," Malfoy dismissed, looking away from her, and picking up a book. Hermione had him right where she wanted him. She continued, "do you have a sibling?"

First confusion, then terror flashed over Malfoy's face before his stony exterior was put back up, but this was all Hermione needed, "I found a little girl in Diagon Alley. She refuses to tell me her parent's names, and looks eerily like you." Malfoy's face was still hard, but his eyes showed his fear even through his derisive comment, "sounds like kidnapping Granger. I thought you were above that. And I have no siblings."

"Well," Hermione started, enjoying every second of backing Malfoy into a corner, "I will soon have custody of Rosalinda, thanks to Child Services, and then I can legally order a paternity test."

It didn't take a second for Malfoy to be no more than a couple centimeters from her face with anger flaring, " **you** have **no** right," he began, but she cut him off. "Yes **I do** as her legal guardian. Now tell me what your secret is Malfoy. This little girl deserves a family," Hermione said with all the determination she felt, but faltered a bit at the end, "please, Malfoy."

 _Oh Merlin, she found her. Rosalinda._

 _ **/Oh, what will happen next? I'm currently on Spring Break, so I'm already working on the next chapter. I hope you liked this one. Please leave a comments :) Have a fantastic week./**_


	10. It All Comes Together

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

It was needless to say that Draco was freaking out. Not only has Rosalinda been found, but **_Granger_** found her. However, he knew the kind of person Hermione Granger was, and even if she hated his guts, she wouldn't hurt a child. This was finally the time to tell someone the truth. It had been six years, and Draco was sure he would take this secret to his grave, but lo and behold he was about to tell _her_ about it. Life really couldn't have gotten any more upside-down in his opinion.

Taking deep breaths, Draco lead Granger to their research area, and put up as many wards as he could think of. He noticed how calm she was, but that wouldn't last for long. He sat down wearily, ran a hand through his hair, then began his story. "First, what I'm about to tell you is a secret, and not yours to tell, you understand me?" he demanded, staring Granger down until she firmly nodded her head. He let out a deep breath and shakily continued, "When I was in our sixth year at Hogwarts, I was under a bit of stress. I had to kill Dumbledore and let the Death Eaters in while the Dark Lord had my parent's lives in his hands. On the first of March, Crabbe, Goyle, and I decided to sneak out of the castle for a bit to have some fun. We found a muggle bar, and got blazing drunk. I honestly don't remember anything passed the fifth shot, but the next morning I was in a strange bed with a girl I didn't know."

Draco decided to pause for a moment to slow his franticly beating heart. Once he was decently back in control again, he went on. "I was smart enough to deduce half of what went on, so I checked her purse for anything with her name on it, and found a muggle driver's license and a wand. I knew she was not a Pureblood or even a halfblood then, so I did what I knew I would have to: I left a note apologizing, wrote down her name and address, then obviated myself from her memory. Later, I would find out that Crabbe and Goyle thought it was a good idea to Imperio the girl and lock my drunk self into a hotel room with her. They had to have their memories altered also."

He took a moment to grab a book to fiddle with before he finished. "I went to see her a few months after the incident, just hoping that I remembered a contraceptive charm that night, but it turns out being black out drunk messes with your memory," Draco gave a nervous laugh, and continued, "I was prepared for any possibility, so I had Snape make me Polyjuice, no questions asked, and plucked a hair from some unsuspecting muggle in town. I knew I had to tell her something, so I talked with her as some random muggle, and told her that her and the baby would be in danger if she or anyone else knew I was the father. I apologized profusely, and gave her a few thousand Galleons to help take care of herself and the baby. She slapped me, and I never saw her again. But, I have deposited money into her Gringotts regularly since the war." Draco was tired by this point, but also a little relieved, it was nice for someone to know his secret.

He finally took a glance at Granger and found her studying him. He was about to make a remark about her lack of manners when she spoke, "It's after the war, there is no Voldemort," Draco flinched, but she trudged on, "to make you give up the child. Why didn't you find her after the war. You are an adult, and the law states that _you_ can do whatever you wish with her."

Draco sighed. The intricacies of Pureblood society weren't taught to anyone outside of the circle, so Granger wouldn't understand all finer details of his life. "You see Granger," he began, "in Pureblood law, a son does not become master of himself until either his father dies, or he marries. That means that if I claimed my daughter now, he would be legally able to overpower me and put her to death. Which you of all people should know my father's stance on Mudbloods. Do you really think he would just be happy to be a grandfather and accept a bastard child as his own? I am neither married or devoid of my father, so for the time being the kid needs to stay hidden. That is why this law is so important to me. Are you happy?" Draco finished, practically fuming.

Hermione's brain must have taken a siesta for a bit, because she was stuck on the fact that Malfoy was the father of Rosalinda. The child she was temporarily adopting. She decided to take a step back and go over everything Malfoy just told her. _Stress. Drunk. Imperius. Sex. Obliviate. Kid. Money. Father. Rosie._ She needed to keep Rosalinda safe, and if Malfoy was telling the truth, she would put off the paternity test and work overtime until this law was broken. When Malfoy finally finished, he was obviously indignant. For good reason, but she still needed to calm him down, so she lowered her voice and gave him a kind smile. "Malfoy," she whispered, "we're going to break this law, and your father will never hurt her." This seemed to have put out the fire in him like a bucket of ice water. It was obvious that telling this massive secret had worn him out. Now, was the time to let him sleep it off, so she would have time to get Rosie.

So, she got up and kneeled in front of Malfoy so that he could see her eyes. "I'm going to get Rosalinda today. I will do everything in my power to keep her safe. But, you are her father, so do you want to see her?" Hermione questioned softly.

The 'yes' that followed was instinctual. Draco didn't even have time to question his parenting ability or think about his parents, Astoria, or how much closer Granger was to his daughter than he was. He could finally see her. Rosalinda. Not a name he put in his letter to her mother, but he also didn't expect much more than that letter being ripped up. Then, his mind went to wandering into questions about Rosalinda. What was her middle name? Did she like her mother? Would she know who he was? Would she accept him? "Whoa whoa. I'm getting ahead of myself. One step at a time. I know nothing about raising a child, and I cannot see her until the law is broken," he reprimanded himself. When Draco finally disentangled himself from his own thoughts, Granger was finished saying, "I need to get her now. I will need to take the rest of the day to get affairs in order. We will talk more tomorrow. Your secret is safe with me."

He started to reply, but her quick hug and whispered, "it'll be okay," stopped him. He fell right back into a stupor of thoughts so thick he didn't hear the library door close on Granger's way out. He was now adding 'strange care for Granger' on his list of constant worries. He needed sleep.

Hermione didn't know why she comforted Malfoy. It's not like he deserved it; he got himself into this mess. But as she traipsed down the massive staircase at Malfoy Manor, she couldn't help but feel worried for the git. _What if his parents find out? What if Astoria finds out? She is probably his plan B, because if he gets married, then his father doesn't have control over Rosie's fate. Imagine knowing you have a kid, but not seeing her for six years. Even Malfoy doesn't seem immune to that sorrow. Malfoy. A father._ During her musing, she did not notice a slender brunette waiting for her by the front doors until she was reaching for the door, and a perfectly manicured hand was in her way.

"I'd like a word," Astoria whispered menacingly, glaring at Hermione like she stole her favorite toy.

Hermione took a few seconds to survey the woman in front of her. Despite Astoria's attempts to seem intimidating, she merely looked like a child about to have a tantrum. Her clothes were rumpled, her hair was a bit out of place from running her hand through it, and her eyes were a bit puffy. It was obvious the Astoria was a bit insecure at Hermione's presence, so Hermione let her down easy. "Astoria, you have nothing to worry about from Draco. He turned me into a pig yesterday, and I'm his boss. There is nothing romantic happening. You should talk to him. But right now, I have to go. I have a very important appointment," she said, checking her watch only to be reminded she was late to get Rosalinda.

Astoria's arm fell out of the way, and the tears came back to the surface. "Thank you," she mumbled, "if only he would actually listen." With that, she began to slump back to Narcissa and maybe cry a bit more, but Hermione's leaving words stopped her. "He has something really big on his plate right now. But once we're done with this case, I'm sure he'll have all the time in the world for you. But right now, this is really important to him. Trust me." The door shut, and Astoria was left to her thoughts which were significantly more optimistic than they were a few minutes ago. Maybe there was truth behind Hermione Granger's nickname The Golden Girl. Who else would still help someone who was a hair away from threatening them?

"The paperwork is all finished Ms. Granger. Now, all you need to do is talk to the director, then pick of Rosalinda," the secretary said with a bright grin. In the room with the director was Kingsley Shacklebolt. Hermione sat down next to her boss and across from a tall, wiry man with an exceptionally well kept black handlebar mustache, who must be the director. He greeted her with a cheerful smile, and said, "Ms. Granger, thank you so much for helping catch Ms. Rosalinda and for taking her in. I know she may not be on the best of terms with you after you helped bring her here, but I was hoping for a favor. Besides her first name and date of birth, we know nothing about this girl. I would ask if during her stay with you, you could figure out a bit more about her. A full name. Parents. Did she enjoy her home life? We need to know if we should even be advertising to find her biological parents. So far, there has been to reports of a missing child. So, either the parents are used to this behavior, or they do not expect her back, which is unacceptable." The director continued, "I expect that you will take very good care of Rosalinda. She is a bit jumpy, so I will assign an extra auror to be posted outside your door during late hours incase she tries to sneak out. Thank you so much for doing this on such a short notice. I appreciate it greatly. Now, I have a meeting to go to, but the Minister will escort you to Rosalinda's room. It was wonderful meeting you." He shook her hand lightly, and hurried out of the room, glancing at his watch.

When the door shut, Hermione began casting wards for privacy. "What is the meaning of such strong wards?" Kingsley inquired, a tinge of worry laced his deep voice. "Privacy," Hermione muttered as she finished the last of twenty three charms she cast over the room. Not even the Weasley twins could break those wards. When she turned back to Kingsley she began Rosalinda's story. "Minister, I know who Rosalinda's parents are," Kingsley was about to ask why she was going through with the adoption when she cut him off with a finger, "I'm not done. If anyone found out who her parent's are before Malfoy and I break that law, she is good as dead."

A look of understanding dawned on the Minister's face, but before he could announce his personal revelation, Hermione continued with the story. "Yes, Malfoy is the father, but her mother is muggleborn. If Lucius Malfoy found out about Rosalinda before this law is broken or Malfoy marries, he has the right to kill Rosie. I can't let that happen Minister. We need to break that law, but until then, Rosalinda needs to be out of sight, and no one must know who her father is," Hermione finished, feeling rather emotional over the whole ordeal. Kingsley nodded with understanding, but Hermione wasn't done quite yet. "Minister, I would like to request that we make an unbreakable vow. No word of Rosalinda's parentage is to be spoken of until this law is broken." Kingsley gave her ultimatum a moment of thought, then solemnly replied, "Anything to keep the child safe. I will never speak a word."

After the unbreakable vow was performed, Kingsley and Hermione made plans for Rosalinda's safety. "We must glamour her appearance before anyone else sees her. It would be too easy to connect her back to Mr. Malfoy when you are working with him, so she needs to be unrecognizable. Also, we need a story as to why you are suddenly housing a little girl," the Minister pointed out.

"Yes," Hermione replied, chewing on her bottom lip in thought. "She can be my cousin. I could say that her parents were involved in a fatal motor accident, and I am keeping her until her older brother and his wife are able to take her. We will of course need to glamour her to vaguely resemble me. Will that do?" she inquired.

"That will work very well. Most wizards will not investigate your claim if it involves anything muggle. Though, we need to be prepared for the media's onslaught. We need this to be an solid story. No kinks. Do you have an aunt and an uncle with children?" Kingsley asked.

"Yes, that's why I used them. It's close enough to the truth. Their youngest daughter is eight, and their oldest child is twenty two. Perfect ages. All we need to do is have my aunt, uncle, and their daughter go on a vacation, and make a fake news report that they were killed in a crash and their daughter was taken in by me," Hermione replied with a smile. Everything was coming together, and she enjoyed making alibis like she used to with Harry in school when they were always in trouble.

"Yes, and alter the brother's memory. It will be a lot of work, but it can be done. Now, all you need to do is keep Rosalinda safe, and hurry up and break the Marriage Act," Kingsley closed, standing up and stretching. "Come, we need to prepare the child," he said, motioning her out of the room. Hermione quickly took down the wards, and scurried after the Minister. When they reached Rosalinda's holding room, they exchanged a look that said 'I hope this works as well as we planned it.'

Rosalinda was sitting primly in an office chair, reading the copy of The Tales of Beetle the Bard that Hermione bought for her. Upon their arrival, however, the little girl slammed the book shut and glared at the two adults entering the room. Hermione, trying her hand at being the caring mother figure, bent down so she was at eye level with Rosie, and softly explained, "Rosalinda, we're here to help. I know who your parents are, and I know that it would be very dangerous if someone found that out. You're going to be staying with me a while so your biological father and I have enough time to fix a law that will make you safe. But first we need to make you look a bit different. Is that okay?"

The little girl stared at Hermione wide-eyed. "You know who my father is?" Rosie asked in a whisper. "Yes, and he has been waiting years to see you," Hermione replied with a light smile. "Will it hurt?" Rosalinda questioned wearily.

Hermione was momentarily confused, until she realized the girl was asking about the glamour. "No," she answered, "it'll feel like a whole bunch of butterflies landed on you, then you'll look in the mirror, and you'll look a bit more like me. Is that okay?"

"Will it keep my mummy safe?" Rosie worried.

"Yes, everyone will think you're my cousin. We will tell you the story we will be telling people later. But if no one can tell who you are, they wouldn't find your mummy. We will keep you and her safe. Promise," Hermione vowed. She knew that they needed to tread carefully with this little girl. Rosalinda had a Slytherin streak in her, and there was no knowing how long her trust in them would last before the fiery little girl came out again.

"We need to hurry. We have a lot of work ahead of us," Kingsley commanded.

Once Rosalinda was out of her chair, Hermione began the glamour charms. The girl's hair turned from straight platinum blonde locks to chocolate waves. Her eyes were hazel, but were turned green to match Hermione's uncle's eyes. Her skin was fair, so Hermione gave her a slight tan. Now, the only thing left was her face, Kingsley was left to glamour that portion, as Hermione couldn't be the best judge of what she looked like. While cheekbones were lowered and eyebrows thinned, the only suggestion Hermione made was to make Rosie's lips plumper and pinker. Her actual cousin had the cutest little lips, and she didn't want that lost in this ruse.

"Done," Hermione and Kingsley announce simultaneously. They conjured up a full length mirror for Rosalinda to look at herself in. The amazement on her new face was adorable, but short lived. She was serious again when she asked, "how long will this take? I want to be with my mum again."

Hermione sighed, "I don't know, sweetie. But, hopefully not too long. We will be talking to your mum very soon to make sure she is okay. But, for now you'll be staying with me. Is that okay?"

"Do you have books?" Rosalinda questioned. This got a boisterous laugh from Kingsley, and after he calmed himself and took a few breathes he replied, "she has more books than Flourish and Blotts." Rosie responded with a radiant grin and said, "I'll be okay."

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it, and it made your week a bit happier. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you./_**


	11. Tiny Office Talks

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Ronald Weasley was not a happy man. He had a stack of menial paperwork the size of his fiancé's plump kneazle waiting on his desk. He had awful back pain from sleeping on their lumpy couch the other night, and it was all because he was stupid enough to make the woman he loved angry by speaking before thinking, which he was beating himself up about. Sitting in his uncomfortable office chair, he had his elbows on his knees and his head resting in his hands, muttering, "why did I have to say that? Why did I have to _do_ that?" He knew Hermione and him had a moment last night, but it came crashing down that morning. She gave him credit for being the comforting presence they both needed last night, but she was still angry with him for his distrust. It didn't help that in morning, after they agreed to temporarily keep the child, he remarked that she would need to tell Kingsley she couldn't work now that she had to take care of a kid. She left quite abruptly after that with a terse 'goodbye'.

A knock on the door startled him out of his self loathing, and he tried to rub the anguish and sleeplessness off his face as he got up to open the door to his tiny office. He didn't understand why they would even give him an office. It was small enough to make Flitwick claustrophobic. Besides for an average sized Ministry desk, a scratchy grey office chair, and a 5 drawer filing cabinet, the only other thing in his office was himself and a cramped pathway to the door. So much for "war heroes deserve the best treatment", Seamus's cubicle was bigger than this. The office was so confined that the door opened outwards, so when Ron opened the door for his visitor, he felt a bump, then a discernible groan.

"Hermione?" he peered around the door at the source of the sound noise. When he saw his fiancé rubbing her shoulder, he couldn't help but quirk a smile and go back to his normal role of easing tension to say, "for someone so smart, you'd think years of being knocked around by this door would help you to remember to stand back a bit."

The quick smirk on her face told Ron that with enough effort, he could get himself back in Hermione's good graces. That tiny grin gave Ron hope, and with hope anything is achievable. But, her face fell a second later, which served to remind Ron that he still had work to do.

He squeezed himself to the side to let her in, and when his witch had shoved herself in the space between the desk and the wall, he shut the door and sat behind is desk again. Looking pained and slightly uncomfortable, like anyone who visited Ron Weasley's office, Hermione shuffled to sit on the least messy corner of his desk, and looked at him with both determination and a bit of anxiety. He could already tell she didn't come in here for a pleasant chat.

"Ron, I know we're not getting on too well right now, but I need you to listen to me before you say anything, okay?" she appealed. Ron knew he was already in deep trouble for putting his foot in his mouth and letting his temper get the best of him, so he vowed that he would show her just how level-headed and trusting he can be. He really wanted to sleep in his own bed with his fiancé curled up with him again. But not trusting his voice at the moment, he just nodded, knowing the fewer things he said, the happier she would be right now.

"Well," Hermione started. "Kingsley and I have come into a special case, and it will require your cooperation." This peaked Ron's curiosity, normally Hermione doesn't work with anyone outside her department. But, the word cooperation paired with recent events lead Ron to be suspicious. She continued, seeing no anger in his face, "A few days ago, I reported a to the Department of Child Services that I saw a little girl both trying to steal books, and alone, unwilling to say who her parents were. Aurors caught the little girl yesterday. That is the little girl they asked us to foster, and there has been an interesting development." She paused for a bit, probably to make sure she worded everything carefully. Ron knew this was going to be some news he wouldn't like because Hermione was taking longer pauses between her words.

"As you are aware, I am working with Malfoy on a case," she persisted. The name Malfoy set off a warning bell in Ron's head. This would usually be where he would get very angry and yell that she shouldn't be near the dirty Death Eater, but Ron knew to stay quiet. He hated Malfoy, and especially Malfoy being around his witch, but he knew that he was on a very thin rope right now, and letting his childhood enemy get to him would not be advisable. So, Ron kept listening, trying to rein his growing temper.

"However, I don't think you know what the law we're trying to break says. The Muggle Marriage Act of 1205 is a law that says pureblood cannot marry muggles or muggleborns. It also states that any possessions from the union are the property of the pureblood. Such possessions include children, and the law states that the pureblood can handle them 'as he pleases', which means by law the pureblood can kill the child." Hermione took a pause, and Ron let the information sink in. With this law, he couldn't marry Hermione. Ron knew, however, that this wasn't the main issue. The issue had something to do with Malfoy, the little girl they would be fostering, and this law. Before he could accuse Malfoy of wanting to kill the child, Hermione began to speak again, and he kept his accusations for after she was done.

"What I am about to tell you is confidential. If anyone finds out, Rosalinda will probably be killed. Do you understand?" Hermione demanded.

Ron nodded his head. Hateful comments were pouring through his consciences, and if his mouth opened, he wouldn't be able to stop his rant. He hoped Hermione could recognize just how difficult if was for him to keep his temper down like this. "Well, Rosalinda is Malfoy's child," Hermione said bluntly. This was Ron's tipping point. Under no circumstances would he foster the child of a Malfoy. Before he could assert this, Hermione cut him off with her signature death glare. A glare so frightening, that he stopped mid mouth-opening, and backed down. As furious as he was about this news, that glare could only mean that his life would be worse than imaginable if he dare protested. So he settled for a glare, and when Hermione was satisfied with his silence, she continued.

"He had this girl young, and under circumstances I am not at liberty to discuss, but the mother is a muggle born witch. Under Pureblood law, Malfoy and all of his possessions are at the will of Lucius Malfoy until Malfoy marries, or Lucius dies. Malfoy has managed to hide the child from Lucius, but if his father ever found out, you can imagine what would happen to the child." Hermione took a pause to look at Ron wearily, hoping that the significance of putting aside his childhood rivalry would not be lost in him.

Ron was freaking out on the inside. He was sure that on the outside he looked as pale as Malfoy. _Malfoy._ He would be taking in Draco Malfoy's child. There was no question about it. Between the look that Hermione was giving him which said 'if you don't agree to this, sleeping on a couch will be the least of your problems' and knowing that the little girl was actually in danger, he knew he had no choice. There was no way Ron Weasley would let a little girl die at the hand of Lucius Malfoy because he couldn't put up with a kid for a few months.

Hermione took his pale but resolute face as a sign of his understanding, and finished, "Believe it or not, Malfoy wants his daughter and doesn't want his father harming her. I know you hate him, but he has been very good to both Rosalinda and her mum in every way he could. I hate to admit it too, but he has changed. Will you help me protect this little girl? If not to help Malfoy, but at least to save this child?"

Hermione was looking at him with big doe eyes. They were pleading him not to be angry, and he could see a tiny bit of fear in those eyes too. Either for fear of his response or fear of his anger, that look killed him. He never imagined Hermione would fear him in any way. He knew he would never hurt her, and he swore at that moment that he would never give her a reason to look at him like that again. He hated Malfoy, but he was not willing to let that cause him to hurt his fiancé any more. He knew that Hermione couldn't tell him the full story, but she seemed to genuinely think well of Malfoy's treatment of the little girl. So, Ron would trust her and, dare he say, trust that Malfoy had good intentions toward the kid.

He took a deep breath, washing all the anger away with the air that evacuated his lungs, and said softly, "Hermione, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't trust you. I'm sorry that I constantly let my anger get the better of me. I love you, and I trust you. If you trust Malfoy, and you think this is right. I support you." The look of amazement and happiness that filled her beautiful chocolate eyes both filled him with joy and hurt at the same time. He was joyous because he made her happy and was on his way to her forgiveness, but he was hurt that she was so happy to have the trust that she should have had all along.

"I'm sorry that I said you cheated on me with Malfoy. I've already told everyone that I was just jealous, and you would never do that. I was such an arsehole. I'm sorry. I will never do that to you again. I hope that you can see that I was just really worried about you, and I went about trying to protect you in the wrong way. I know you don't need protection. You could kick Malfoy's sorry arse any day. But, I just want to at least seem like I had some power to protect you. But all I did was hurt you, and I never ever want that to happen. It wouldn't ever happen again. I swear," Ron vowed, keeping his eyes on Hermione. She was beginning to cry, and when he was about to start apologizing profusely all over again, she stopped him with a finger over his partially opened mouth.

"Ron," Hermione began with glassy eyes, "I love you too. And you were an arse." He began to look down, not wanting to meet angry eyes, but she gently tilted his chin back up. When he was looking at her, he continued with a sad smile. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize that you were just trying to protect me. Yes, you did in a very wrong way, but I shouldn't have immediately accused you of not trusting me without knowing your reasoning. I know you would never try to hurt me. Now, if you ever falsely accuse me of cheating on you again, I will make Voldemort look like a school years bully," she threatened with dark eyes. She was still very upset over that. "But, for now, we need to take care of a kid, and we can't do that when we're fighting all the time. I love you, and I want to make this work. We need to start by communicating without anger. We can't let petty arguments dominate our time together. Are you willing to try to make us better? Communicate without getting hateful first?"

Knowing that his relationship depended on this answer made his "of course" come out quickly. Ron was happy. He was being forgiven. Everything would be okay again. That feeling was reconfirmed by the bone-crushing hug Hermione gave him. They sat like that for what seemed like five minutes: her almost in his lap, leaning off the desk awkwardly embracing him in his chair. When she finally pulled away, she said, "Now I hate to do this, but I made Kingsley do it too. Would you make an unbreakable vow not to tell anyone what you know about Rosie? I need to make sure she is 100% safe. I know you wouldn't tell, but I need to make sure no one can force the information out of you."

Ron found an Unbreakable Vow a bit far-fetched for a simple case like this. No way it would take more than a week for her and Malfoy to break the law, and it would be useless. When he expressed this to her, she frowned slightly, "I know it seems drastic, but I don't think this case will be an easy one, and what's one more level of protection? The Unbreakable Vow will end when either the law is broken, Malfoy marries, or Lucius dies."

Ron thought about this. It wasn't as if he had the overwhelming urge to tell everyone that he was fostering Malfoy's daughter, what can a bit more protection harm? But in typical Weasley fashion, he couldn't let Hermione get away without a bit of teasing. "You know, Lucius could easily be taken care of," Ron said with an exaggerated wink. She laughed heartily at his comment. "That would be wonderful and make my life much easier. Unfortunately, I have this pesky conscience that just wouldn't let me off him yet. I'll ring you if it finally goes away," she replied with a smirk.

Ron loved their banter and was ecstatic to have it back. But, something was nagging his thoughts, and he had to discuss it with Hermione before they got too far off track. "Will we still be able to get married? With this law I mean," he asked quietly. Her brow furrowed, "honestly, I hadn't thought of that. I tend to think of the purebloods as just the Sacred 28 clan," then, she looked at him with her lips quirked upwards creating an adorable dimple on her left right cheek. "I think I can manage to break one pesky law for the sake of marrying you though." With that, Hermione and Ron preformed the vow, then talked good-naturedly for another half an hour before Hermione had to go pick of Rosalinda. She gave him a kiss goodbye, and managed to bump her knee only once on the way out of his office.

Ron beamed. Everything was okay.

Despite Hermione's discussion with Ron going so well, she still felt something was wrong- or was going to go wrong. The uneasiness followed her through signing foster paperwork. Only until she saw Rosalinda did she finally just shove all the uneasiness into a box in her mind. _I'm sure it's nothing. Ron sincerely apologized. He didn't get angry. Everything is going to be perfect again. Right?_

 _"_ _Wrong,"_ her subconscious said, but she ignored it. She didn't want to be untrusting like she accused him of being. So, all those bad thoughts her put aside for worrisome thoughts. _Where will Rosalinda sleep? Who will take care of her during the day? When can she see her father? How do they locate her mother? Should they locate her mother? Ugh. This is so complicated. How am I going to see Draco? Hold it. When did Malfoy become Draco? Oh goodness. I need a nap._

"So Rosie, what's you're favorite color?" Hermione asked Rosalinda on their way out of the Ministry. She needed to make a room for Rosie, and ease the tension. She needed the little girl's cooperation through this process.

"Red," she replied simply, swinging her arms as they strolled through the lobby.

 _Oh Draco is going to get a kick out of that- Dang it! Stop that!_ "How would you like to go shopping for some stuff for your room?" Hermione questioned. She looked down to see Rosie pulling on her now-brown hair with slight anxiety. "Hey, what's that matter? We don't have to go shopping if you don't want to."

"Why isn't mummy getting me?" Rosie asked, her eyes shining with tears, bottom lip trembling.

Hermione's heart melted. She stopped their walk, and bent down to be on Rosie's eye level and whispered, "if your mummy comes in, they can give her a truth potion, and if they do, they will know who your daddy is, and that would be dangerous for you. She is just trying to protect you. But, I will try to find her, okay?" Rosalinda gazed at her with childish trust and bobbed her head. She was still upset, and Hermione knew how to make that better. "Now," Hermione began in a secretive tone which caught Rosie's attention, "how about we get you a nice red blanket for your bed, some new clothes, and to decorate, I think a few new books are in order." Hermione smiled mischievously, and Rosalinda returned with an eager nod.

Hermione stood back up, and led them to the Floo, which Rosalinda was well versed in. As soon as they stepped into Diagon Alley from the Leaky Cauldron, Hermione said, "maybe we'll get some ice cream first. We never did get to it last time." That drew a giggle from Rosie, and the two practically skipped to Florean Fortescue's.

Disillusioned and in a shady alley, a woman watched as her own daughter, disguised under a glamour, and the famous Hermione Granger giggled and ate ice cream. _That should be me. They should have never found my baby._ Sadness filled her heart. She wanted her daughter. She wanted to be out of hiding. But, how is she to get her little girl back without putting her in harms way? With that depressing thought, the young mother broke down into tears. However, as her tears faded, a resoluteness took its place. She was going to get her daughter back.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it, and it made your week a bit happier. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you. I will be regularly updating for the next little while./_**


	12. Mother's Job

**_I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters. Thank you for putting up with my writing hiatus. There is still a lot more of this story to tell, and I wouldn't be giving up on it._**

"Where do we put her?" Ron asked Hermione, worry lacing his voice as his eyes dart to the little girl reading on their couch, then back to his fiancé. Ron Weasley had minimal experience with kids as his youngest sibling was only a year younger than himself. While he loved his childhood, he did not want to sleep in the same room at this new child. He had enough nights shared with at least two other people in the same room for his liking. Hermione, and her bad habit of stealing the quilt every night, was more than enough sharing for him.

Hermione chewed on her bottom lip for a few seconds while staring mindlessly at his Chudley Cannons jumper. Suddenly her eyes brightened and focused on his eyes again. "An extension charm!" she quietly cried. "It's perfect," she continued, pacing, "we can remove all the towels from the linen closet, and extend it into a room." She was already in the planning stages of the exact dimensions she would need to make the closet to make it livable.

"Wait," Ron interrupted, "we're putting her in a _closet_?" The resemblance to Harry's stay at his aunt and uncle's was beginning to arise, and it made Ron very uncomfortable. As much as he would love to have his flat back to just Hermione and himself, he wasn't going to shove a kid into a closet.

Hermione let out a breath. It was her 'you obviously don't work at the same speed as me. Let me slow it down for you' sigh, or at least that's what Ron interpreted her exasperated breath and eye-roll combo. "It's a closet right now, but when I'm done, it'll be the same size as our room. It may look like she lives in a closet, but I promise it will be much comfier than Harry's childhood room." After she finished her explanation, she went back to mentally planning out Rosie's room.

It was apparent to Ron that the discussion was over, and he found himself in an awkward spot. He could either continue to stand next to his future wife as she thought through the new bedroom quietly, or he could sit on the couch next to a little girl he only briefly met. He deliberated for a solid minute before he resolved to get to know the kid that would be living with him indefinitely.

When Ron plopped down on the couch, he was border-line sweating, nervous. Rosalinda briefly peered up at him over her book, but then went back to reading. _How do I start a conversation with a six year old? What does she like? What do I like that a six year old girl would like?_ Ron put his head in his hands to think, and peered at his jumper. Looking at the seeker from the Cannons inspired Ron. He lifted his head, and asked Rosie, "So, do you like Quidditch?" _Who doesn't like Quidditch?_

Rosalinda's eyes lit up like the candles in the Great Hall at Hogwarts. She replied excitedly, "Yes! My favorite team is Harpies! Me and mummy used to watch their games all the time."

"Did you know my sister plays for the Harpies?" Ron asked her with a smile.

"She does? Can I meet her?" she asked delighted, but a bit nervous.

Ron was thrilled to have something in common with Rosie. Quidditch was his passion, and he was glad he got the chance to share it with a kid. Not wanting to let a young fan down, Ron turned to Hermione who was still wearing a trench into the kitchen floor. "Honey, can you take Rosalinda to see Ginny tomorrow?" he asked.

"Sure," Hermione replied thoughtlessly.

"I'm happy! What's your favorite team, Won?" Rosie asked, mispronouncing his name in a fashion eerily similar to Lavender Brown.

Their conversation continued for the next hour as Hermione set up Rosie's room. Both Ron and Rosie were happily chatting, and groaned simultaneously when Hermione called Rosie's bedtime. After Rosie was tucked into her new room in the closet, decorated in Gryffindor red and surprisingly spacious, Hermione snuggled up on the loveseat with a huge book with Ron beside her reading a Quidditch magazine.

"I think I can really imagine having kids," Hermione whispered, putting her book in her lap.

Ron froze up. Despite his good conversation with Rosie, kids were still a terrifying subject. He knew Rosie would go to her mum and Malfoy soon, and couldn't imagine a kid actually staying, living with them. Before he could voice his hesitation on the matter, Hermione added, "Oh, Kingsley said it would be best to do an interview for the Prophet about Rosie before they start making up stories. Can you come with me?" She was looking at him with hope filled eyes, but his resolve to not get too deep in the drama with Malfoy's kid stayed firm.

"Umm," he began, "I have a lot of paperwork to do at work, and you know how slow I am with writing reports." He knew it was a lame excuse, but it was all he could come up with.

"It's probably best," she replied with a small frown, "the more people that are shown connected to Rosie, the harder it will be to make sure she is safe."

Hermione's reasoning made Ron feel guilty. He was raised in a house where his mother primarily handled the children, and to him, this was Hermione's job. He knew to never say this to Hermione; her feminist ideals would run him over like a pack of angry hippogriffs. Nonetheless, he still took the easy way out and didn't feel too good about it. He knew Rosie wasn't his kid, and he shouldn't feel bad about skipping out on a mother's duty, but he did. With his thoughts swirling around in his mind like an indistinguishable mass of confusion, he kissed Hermione's forehead and went to bed early. _Maybe a goodnights sleep will make everything better._

Hermione sat on the couch looking at the same paragraph in her book for the next hour. She wanted to read the text, it might solve the mystery of the disappearing Rosier family, but all she could do was think. Overanalyze really. _I know that Ron was just making an excuse. Why didn't he want to come? I highly doubt he was thinking of Rosie's protection. Why do I have a feeling this is the beginning of the end?_ Hermione's head hurt with conflicting emotions. On one hand, she loved Ron. They were best friends. But on the other hand, they fought more often than not and had conflicting opinions on some very important issues. _It's the 'mother's job' thing_ Hermione thought.

A few years ago, her and Ron got into a fight about raising children. There was a man taking his daughter into the Madam Malkin's, and Hermione said, "Awww, look Ron, that little girl's dad is taking her to get robes for Hogwarts. Isn't that sweet?" She expected him to just grunt in agreement, and continue talking about Quidditch, but instead he grumbled, "Poor guy." When she gave him a glare, all he did was add, "What, it's a mother's job." Hermione blew her top. Eventually, Ron conceded that she was right, but Hermione always had the feeling that he backed down to make her stop yelling; today felt like conformation of that feeling. Hermione really hoped she was wrong about that instinct, but she knew otherwise.

With dread sinking into her mind, she put her book down, and went to bed. That night, she slept a bit farther away from Ron than she normally would.

"Harry? Are you awake?" Hermione called as she and Rosie exited the floo and dusted themselves off.

A very disheveled Harry Potter came down the staircase of Grimmauld Place. He merely grunted at their presence and shuffled passed them to get a morning cup of tea. Ginny bounced down shortly after, obviously remembering Hermione's owl about their visit, and greeted them with mild enthusiasm, which was very peppy for Ginny in the morning. "Hi Hermione, who's this?" Ginny asked, bending down to meet Rosie.

"Rose," Hermione answered, "She's my uncle's daughter." Kingsley and Hermione both agreed that changing Rosalinda's name would be necessary, but not a large change because Rosie would have to be able to respond to the new name. Rose fit quite nicely; it was common enough not to give her heritage away, but close to her true name.

"That's a beautiful name for a beautiful girl," Ginny cooed.

"She's also a big fan of the Harpies," Hermione added. It worked perfectly. Ginny was so excited that she had a fan, and offered to bring Rosie to the Harpies' practice that day. All the while Hermione would have time to enroll Rosie in school, find a permanent babysitter, and work. Hermione tried to hide her devilish grin as Rose babbled merrily to Ginny, and Ginny responded, delighted to have a fan.

While the two chatted over Quidditch, Hermione slipped into the kitchen to chat with Harry. "Hey Harry, can we talk?" Hermione probed, hoping he was awake enough to have this conversation.

"Yeah, what's up?" Harry asked. The caffeine from the tea must have picked him up.

"You're my best friend," she began. Harry grumbled, "Ugh. I don't know if I want to hear this." but Hermione ignored him and continued on. "What would you do if I said I might break up with Ron?"

This snapped Harry out of his mumblings, and he stared at her wide eyed for a few seconds before narrowing them to emerald slits and hissing, "What did he do?"

"Nothing, Harry. Calm down. We just have different ideals, and we fight all the time. How often do you and Ginny fight?" Hermione questioned.

Harry, now much more relaxed, thought for a second. "Maybe twice a week. But usually nothing too big," he replied.

"Ron and I are lucky to get through a week without more than 1 big blow out fight, and a load of tiny squabbles." Hermione rubbed her face with exasperation. "He wants me to be a stay at home mom, to do everything, and praise him for every little thing he does. I don't want that kind of life. I don't want to bicker with my husband my entire life. Hell, I've had less fights with Malfoy this past week than I've had with Ron, and I spent more time with Malfoy." She groaned, "What do I do?"

Harry took Hermione's hand, and gave her a sincere smile, "Do what's best for you. In all honesty, we have all been sick of you and Ron fighting since you first got together, but we thought you were happy. You both are my best friends, and I just want you two to be happy and for neither of you to have to sleep over at my house because you fight." Hermione looked away sheepishly, but Harry squeezed her and and she looked back. Harry continued, "You know I love you. Just be happy. If that's with Ron or someone else, it doesn't matter to me. Hell, you could be with Malfoy and as long as you were happy I'd be fine with it. Okay?"

Hermione nodded her head with a sad smile, but said resolutely, "I think I know what I'm going to do. Thank you Harry. I love you too," and pecked him on the cheek. She missed the blush creep onto Harry's face as she looked to see if Rosie was around. Not seeing the little girl, she turned back to Harry who was rubbing his neck. "I have something else to tell you." Hermione put up silencing charms around the room, and told Harry the edited version of Rosalinda's story that Kingsley and Ron were given, and as with the previous conversations, they made an unbreakable vow of silence at the end for Rosie's safety.

"Wow," Harry sighed, amazed at Hermione's work, "You glamoured her? Because she doesn't look a thing like him." She nodded, and the look of shock on Harry's face did fade for a solid minute. He stood up abruptly, almost toppling Hermione with surprise, and gushed, "I completely forgot about work. I'm late! I'm sorry Mione. We'll talk again soon. Can you stay for a bit longer? Andromeda is coming to babysit and I need you to let her in." After Hermione nodded quickly, he dashed through the fireplace to the Ministry.

The brief period of silence gave Hermione time to reflect upon her recent decision. She was going to break up with Ron, and she didn't feel a gut wrenching pain over the thought. There was sadness, yes, but more peace. She would finally have the chance to actually date, to make the food she liked to eat, and to catch up on all the book reading she could imagine. The chime of the Floo marked Andromeda's arrive. That and her calling, "Harry, dear."

"Harry had to rush off to work, but I'm here," Hermione called from the kitchen.

Andromeda stepped into the kitchen a few moments later with a box full of cookies. Ever since the war, Andromeda went into 'super-grandmum' mode and brought cookies for little James and Teddy every time she got the chance to see the boys. "Hello, Hermione. How's my grandsons?" she asked, eyes twinkling.

"I just got here a while ago. How about we go and get them ready together," Hermione suggested. Andromeda's grin widened, and they trooped upstairs to get James and Teddy ready for the day.

"Andromeda?" Hermione called, stopping the elderly woman from leaving with the young boys. "My uncle's daughter is staying with me for a while, would you be will to babysit on occasion? I'm enrolling her in school today, so she'll be covered most all day. I know it's a lot to ask, but Ron's no help and sometimes I need to get out and run errands—" Hermione rambled nervously, but was cut off my Andromeda.

"Of course, dear. I'd love to. Bring her over any time. I get lonely without these little ones," she said, ruffling James and Teddy's hair.

"Thank you," Hermione said, grabbing Andromeda, and consequently James due to Andromeda holding him, into a tight hug, "You're the best."

"I know," Andromeda laughed and squeezed Hermione back. Once Hermione let go, she said bye to the group, and flooed to the Ministry shortly after Andromeda's departure.

Draco was stuck in one of the most unpleasant conversations of his adult life. His mother decided to confront him about his relationship with Astoria, but to add fuel to the fire, she wanted to know how he felt about Granger. The conversation was a terse and overly polite at best.

"So, Draco darling, how are you and Astoria?" Narcissa questioned, delicately sipping her tea while staring intently at Draco.

"Fine."

"Have you proposed to her yet?"

Draco fell into flabbergasted silence, then replied shortly, "No."

"Does it have something to do with Ms. Granger?"

Unable to hide the dumbfounded look, he slightly stuttered, "N-no."

"Draco, speak up."

"No, mother." He replied, annoyance gracing his features once again.

"Why haven't you proposed to Astoria?"

"It doesn't feel right."

"Then, what is wrong?" His mother prodded, setting her tea cup down.

"Nothing, mother."

"Then why have you not proposed to her?"

"I just don't think she's the right one," Draco sighed.

"Girls are not objects to pick and choose from, Draco. You should not string along Astoria if you do not plan on marrying her," Narcissa ranted.

"I know mother. I meant that she isn't quite the person I think I want to marry."

"Well who do you want to marry? Ms. Granger?"

"Mother, why do you think I am interested in Granger?"

"Draco, ever since she's been working with you, you've actually been smiling. Now, are you interested in Ms. Granger?"

"No, mum. I know what you're thinking, but I'm just happy to be doing _something_. I have purpose besides amassing more wealth."

"I see. So, Ms. Granger gives you purpose?" Narcissa quizzed.

"No, mother. The job I have helping her gives me purpose."

"Do you care for Ms. Granger?"

Draco paused to think, "I suppose I do. Why?"

"Be careful. She already caused you enough grief before," his mother warned.

It took a few moments for Draco to understand what his mother was rambling on about, but when it dawned on him, anger rose up. "She was tortured by Bella! She didn't cause that. She didn't make me stand there and do nothing! I can't believe you would blame her for the horrible position she was put in. It's not her fault I felt guilty. It was my own."

"And what could you have done, Draco? But she didn't see how helpless you were. She blamed you!"

"She never blamed me, mother! She stood up for me at my trail. Her and Potter were the reason I'm not in Azkaban."

Draco had never seen his mother speechless before. It was fascinating and terrifying.

"I still think she's trouble," she spat.

With that, Draco just sighed and stood up. "Mum, I know you want what's best for me, but I'm old enough to decide who I keep in my life, and was makes me happy. I love you, but this is my life," he declared and walked out of the room without being dismissed by Narcissa. She stood there, staring at the retreating form of her son thinking, "What has she done with my son?"

Draco retreated back into the Malfoy Library which had recently become his sanctuary. He was deep in thought, contemplating what Hermione Granger really meant to him. _She's still a know-it-all, but she's let go a bit. She's fun, sometimes. She's crazy intelligent. She cares about me, for some reason. Do I care about her? Yes. She's saving my daughter. She gave me my life back and a job that gives me direction. But is she a friend? She is becoming a confidant. Maybe we could be friends. What then? What about Astoria? Astoria is kind and probably loves me. I don't love her, but could I one day? Maybe. Could I love Her—_

Draco's internal musing was cut short, at a very critical point, by the library doors closing. He looked up from his chair to find none other than Astoria sauntering into the room with a determined look on her delicate face. "We need to talk," she stated plainly as she gracefully placed herself in the seat across from Draco. _Yes we do_ Draco thought. _This is not going to be fun._

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it and are having a joy-filled day. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you./_**


	13. Relationship Questions

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Hermione was in a meeting with Kingsley trying not to show how anxious she was to get out of there. Sure, she loved working, and Kingsley was far from boring, but she was itching to actually accomplish something that day. Having a child directly affected by the law living with her and seeing Malfoy's despair over not having his child made Hermione want to hurry up and break this law. She knew they were close to something. But, this tedious check-up with Kingsley was hindering her ability to move on with her day.

"Little Wings Gifted Primary is a school in Little Winging for magical children that would be best for Rosalinda. It's close to Harry's old residence with the Dursleys. I can get you a pamphlet if you wish. I wouldn't suggest sending her to a muggle school, as it seems she has not been raised around muggle children, and accidental magic is beginning at her age," Kingsley explained, looking at her expectantly.

"I will owl Little Wings right away. Was there any trouble modifying my family's memories?" Hermione asked.

"No," Kingsley replied with a pleased expression, "It was rather difficult to get an Unspeakable out of the Department of Mysteries, but once he heard he was to modify muggle minds, he was most eager. I think he took it as a chance to research. Don't worry about secrecy. As the name implies, the Unspeakables will not divulge information."

"Thank you, Kingsley. I need to run off to do an interview for the prophet, but thank you so much for taking this in stride. You didn't have to help Rosalinda, but you've done so much. Thank you," Hermione said sincerely. She knew Kingsley would never let a little girl be harmed, but he didn't have to go to such lengths to make sure everything remained confidential when he didn't even know the full story.

"It was no problem. It's nice to have a mystery to solve now that there is no war going on. Take care. I'll see you on Friday to review progress," he said with a smile, and dismissed her.

Hermione gave Kingsley one last 'thank you' smile and rushed to her office where she was suppose to be five minutes ago to begin the interview.

Once she reached her office and threw open the door, three reporters greeted her with slightly agitated greetings. She took her seat behind her desk, and welcomed them. "Thank you so much for being here. I'm sorry I'm a tad late, I got caught up in a meeting with the Minister." She knew that mentioning Kingsley would make their temper's ease; they couldn't get mad if the Minister was holding her up.

The first reporter to speak up was an older man. He had a dark complexion, and dark brown hair was greying, covered up by a black fedora. He was wearing a black muggle suit, which Hermione found odd in the Wizarding world, and his caramel eyes flashed with suspicion. "So," he began in a rumbling tone, "who is the mysterious little girl you have been seen with and who is she in relation to the girl you had the aurors chase down?"

Hermione took a relaxing breath. She had despised the press ever since Rita Skeeter's article in fourth year. But this time, she had all yesterday to come up with an answer to their questions, and under her terms, they could not print anything but her exact words. "The little girl I had the auror's catch ended up being a runaway child…"

The rest of the interview went in this way. Invasive questions she carefully planned the answers to. By the end of the interview, she was exhausted. She slumped down in her office chair for a few moments of rest before she went to Malfoy Manor. _I really hope Malfoy has something good. I need a pick-me-up after this day, and it's only just begun._ After ten minutes of rest, she finally got up, wrote the letter to Little Wings, and left her office to find the Owlery.

"Draco, do you really think we are going to work? Be honest with me," Astoria commanded.

They had been having a talk about their relationship, and Draco was already tired of it, mainly because he had this talk with his mother yesterday. He knew he needed to let Astoria go. He needed someone who would challenge him, push him, and stand _beside_ him. Astoria wasn't that person, and Draco knew it. She would encourage him, support him, and stand behind him, but that's not what he knew he needed. However, marrying Astoria would break Lucius control over him, and now knowing where his daughter was, he wanted that more than anything. _What if we can't break this law?_ That thought was the reason Draco couldn't tell Astoria he didn't want to be with her. He needed a back up. He put everything on the line to protect his family during the war, and he was determined to not have that be in vain.

"I think we will if we work at it and are honest with each other," Draco replied. Technically it was true. If he was honest with her and told her that he had a daughter, they might be able to reach a mutual understanding. And if he actually told her to change her personality to what he needed, they could probably work through it. But how was that fair? She would have to change herself and deal with a child that isn't her own.

Astoria began to tear up. She did not expect him to want to work out their relationship. She prepared herself, with the help of Narcissa, for a break up. However, a tiny thought creeped into her head. _What if he's lying? Just using you for the time he needs you?_ Astoria squashed that train of thought. _Relationships are built on trust, so you need to trust him._ "Are you willing to work at it?" she asked Draco, hoping for a solid yes and to be swept off her feet.

"If you are," he replied giving her delicate hug. Not quite as dramatic as she imagined, but sweet. "Of course," she replied into his chest. They stayed like that for a minute. Astoria was over the moon. _We can work it out. We'll learn to love each other, and everything will be alright._

Pulling away, Astoria was determined to begin being a better girlfriend right away. "So," she began, smiling. "What are you working on?" she said, gesturing to the mess of books only Draco could have created.

She saw his hesitation to tell her. Either he didn't trust her, or it was really important like he told his mother. He let out a long breath, then lead him over to a table with genealogical trees spread over it. "I'm trying to find out what happened to the Rosier and Fawley. Their family trees are incomplete for centuries, then, just end in the 90's. We need to find descendants for the case we're working on." He looked at her hopefully, and she was only happy to give him a bright smile in return. She could help, and that made her positively jubilant.

"My mother was a Fawley! She changed her name when she married my father, but I'm sure she has the complete Fawley family tree. They were a paranoid bunch, and didn't want anyone but the family to know the complete ancestry. The Rosier's changed their name. Once Druella, Bellatrix's mother, married that awful Black man, the entire family changed their name to Blishwich. The Blishwich's married into the Black family, but died out, so the Rosier's took the name. They kept a pureblood surname, but one that was no longer listed on the Sacred 28, so the Dark Lord wouldn't find them," Astoria informed enthusiastically.

Draco was over the moon. He grinned at Astoria, and spontaneously picked her up and gave her a kiss. She was giggling when he set her down, and he realized that he probably shouldn't have done that. She would become more attached to him, and if he broke it off with her, she would be even more angry with him. But, he couldn't find it within himself to be upset over the action. He was one step closer to his daughter, and nothing could stop the joy he felt knowing he could have her soon.

"Why did you need to know about the families?" Astoria questioned with a smile on her face. The question brought Draco back down to earth.

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you. There are too many people who would stop us if they knew what we were doing," Draco replied solemnly. Guilt ran through his heart. She just helped him with his research, but he still wouldn't tell her what it was about. He forced the feeling to go away. He knew that it was for the protection of his daughter, himself, and Granger, and for that he could stand to keep this secret.

"Oh," she sighed, disappointed. "I support you, no matter if I know what you're doing or not, because I know what you're doing must be good," she said with growing resolution. "But, she added. "You need to start opening up. Relationships are two ways." She gave him a strained smile and strutted out of the library, turning back to say, "Goodbye, Draco. You'll owl me soon? I know your need for secrecy, but I want to go on a real date." Then, she turned away, not needing a reply, and left.

 _Astoria still has her flair for dramatics._ Draco finally sat down in his chair among his mess of research and life. Setting his head in his hands, he began to go over the past day. _I'm in way too deep._

Hermione flooed into the sitting room of Malfoy Manor, prepared to make progress on the case. She didn't expect a very tense Astoria to be pacing the room. "Are you okay?" Hermione asked wearily.

"Oh." Astoria's head whipped around, surprised. "I'm fine, just thinking through some things," she replied with a sad smile.

"Okay," Hermione said. "If you need anything, you can talk to me." She gave the other woman a pat on the shoulder, and left Astoria to her thoughts.

Once Hermione made it to the library, she was focused. She planned on searching through "The Art of Lawmaking" again, and she wanted to update Draco on Rosalinda. However, all of the plans went out the window when she was swept up in a massive hug. He spun her around laughing, and this only muddled Hermione's brain further. _Why is Malfoy hugging me and laughing?_

"I know who the Rosier and Fawley family are," Malfoy said with a grin once he set her down. He jogged over to his notes, and she followed, elated but confused still. "The Fawley family married into the Greengrass family and kept their genealogy close to the family, and the Rosier family changed their name!"

"Oh! That's amazing! We have all the families now! How did you figure this out?" Hermione rambled while beaming. They were close, so close!

"Astoria told me! I told her about the Rosier and Fawley family disappearing, and she explained. Do you know what this means? After we get the Fawley family tree from her, all we need to do is find the counter curse and get each of the family's blood. Since everyone has married within the Sacred 28 for centuries, it should only take five people!" he told her excitedly.

Hearing that Astoria was the one that discovered something that eluded her, made a twinge of jealously flash in Hermione's mind. She hoped it didn't show on her face. She didn't want Malfoy to have one more thing to hold over her, so she focused on the rest of the information he gave her, to Malfoy's notice. "Do we know which five people could do it?"

"I've been thinking about that. I have Black, Malfoy, Rosier, Bulstrode, and Flint blood. Astoria has Fawley and Greengrass blood. Weasel has Prewett and Weasley blood. Okay, maybe more than five, but the rest should be easy to acquire. Most of the rest are either friends, or in Azkaban."

"Oh! We're so close! I can feel it," Hermione breathed, realizing in that moment how physically close she was to Malfoy. He seemed to get the second meaning to her words also, and a faint blush creeped up his neck, leading her eyes up to his suddenly very attractive lips. Surprised at the thought, Hermione eye's flicked to Draco's and saw a familiar spark there. One that says he was thinking along the same lines as she was. Unsure what to do and unwilling to act on impulse, Hermione began to talk aimlessly. "Rosalinda is doing well. Her favorite colour is red, which I'm sure may disturb you immensely. She is obsessed with Quidditch, just like you, and her favorite team is the Harpies. She's having the time of her life right now with Ginny, who is letting her watch them practice—"

"Hermione," Malfoy began. Hermione looked at him wide eyed, shocked he used her given name. He seemed to have realized the same thing, and went quite for a second before continuing. "Do you think I'm a bad person?" he asked quietly.

The shame in his voice melted her heart. "No," she said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Why would you think that, Draco?"

"Because, I watched you tortured and did nothing about it! I tormented you for years! Told you that you were beneath me and other awful things. I did nothing but hurt you," he vented and paced.

"Yes, and you grew up where that was all acceptable. If you did any differently, your family could have been killed in the war. And you did help me. Remember the Quidditch World Cup? You told me the Death Eaters were coming. You didn't identify me to Bellatrix. You did what you could. You're not a bad person, you were just in a bad situation and chose self-preservation," she explained.

"But what now?" he asked, agitated. "The war has been over, and I could have married Astoria and been able to have my daughter, but I haven't. I chose my own happiness over my child's." He fell into his chair and covered his face with his hands in shame.

Hermione walked over and got down on her knees in front of him. She removed one of his hands from his face, and he unwillingly looked at her. "Draco," she murmured, keeping his hand in hers, "I would have done the same thing." Hermione sighed, then looked back up into his eyes and continued, "If I didn't meet my child and was as young as you were when the child was born, I don't think I could sacrifice my happiness for an unknown. You're trying now, and that's what matters. One day she'll understand that her dad took care of her in his own way. Lucius and Narcissa wouldn't be happy when they find out, and from what I know about you, your family is very important. If you meet the right woman, marry her, but your daughter wouldn't want to be in a household where her parent's don't love each other."

"Thank you," he said softly.

"You're welcome. Now, let's solve this so you don't have to worry about marrying, okay?" Hermione said, getting up. She found the book she was intending to read before she came in, and she folded herself into her chair with a new sense of determination. Her brief moment of focus was disrupted by Draco saying, "I hope my child isn't a bleeding Gryffindor. Better get her away from you and Weasel before all hope is lost."

Hermione laughed and they both continued reading in silence for the next four hours, only talking when noteworthy information was found.

Draco was bored. He and Hermione had been reading for four hours, and gotten nowhere. Apparently the universe made a law of only one significant discovery per day. He put down his book and rubbed his temples. _What's going on with us? My parents would never approve of a mudblood, let alone my half-blood child. Why am I even thinking of Granger like this? There's no way we can be anything. She's my boss. Married to Weasel King himself. I have Astoria. But we're actually getting along. I like her as a person. She's intelligent, witty. She can keep up with my banter. I wished Astoria was like Hermione. And even if Granger said she didn't think I was evil doesn't mean she could ever think of me as anything other than her slightly reformed school bully. Could she?_ "Granger." The words left his mouth before he realized what he was doing. "Are we still on for Saturday?"

She looked up from her book, confusion marring her normally assured features. When she finally remembered the 'date' she asked for the other day, her face flushed, and she slightly stuttered, "You never said you would go."

"I think I will," he said casually, flipping back open his book, trying to seem as if it didn't mean anything to him.

"Okay," she replied, equally as offhanded. "Malfoy?"

"Yeah," he said, looking up from his book curiously.

"How about some lunch now? I'm starving," she said, giving him a smirk.

"Any weird cravings today?" He have her his signature smug look.

"You."

The reply caught Draco off guard and he blushed furiously. Closer inspection of her face showed a small smile pulling at the corners of her lips. She was joking. Embarrassed that he reacted like a second year, he quipped, "Should have known you were too much of a prude for me," but his heart wasn't in it.

She laughed. A delightful sound that made him want to smile. "Gullible."

"Know-it-all."

"Brat."

"Spotter!" Draco called. When the house elf appeared, he commanded, "Make me a lamb burger and some chips, please." He dismissed the elf as soon as he finished his order, and sneered at Hermione. "Oh, did you want something?"

"Dinky!" Hermione yelled, and he was beside her in an instant.

"Yes, Misses?" Dinky greeted.

"Could you please make me—?" she started to ask, but Draco cut her off.

"You can't just command around my house elves!" he said indignantly.

"Watch me!" Hermione challenged and continued, "Dinky could you please make me a bowl of—"

"Dinky!" Draco called, and the little house elf turned obediently towards his Master. "All she wants is a bowl of chips, that's all." He released Dinky as quickly as he did Spotter. Once the house elf was gone, Draco turned his wicked smile to Hermione.

"Was that necessary?" Hermione huffed.

"Yes. Can't have you getting used to having house elves. If you get used to my house elves, you'll want one of your own. If Hermione Golden-Girl Granger had a house elf the world would spiral into immorality," Draco said dramatically.

"Can you order me a bowl of soup?" she pouted.

"Now, that would only feed your dependency. Remember the spiral into immorality? We wouldn't want that," he grinned.

"Please," she whined.

"I guess I can tie up my strong morals for one bowl of soup. But, it's up to Spotter if he wants to give up his Ministry mandated break to slave over a stove," Draco narrated cheekily.

Hermione groaned. Draco couldn't hold in his laughter any longer, and cracked-up. Eventually, she giggled a bit, but wouldn't look into his eyes.

"Bye Draco. I'll see you tomorrow," Hermione yawned as she exited the library to go home.

After they got their meals, in which Hermione did get her soup, they chatted for half an hour about Rosalinda. Once they finished, they silently researched for another three hours, only stopping to recap small findings once. Draco found a sentence in his tome about needing an object magically bound to a group of laws. They decided to write it down, but continue on trying to find counter curses with no further progress.

Draco let out a deep breath he didn't know he was holding. Today was exciting in a very exhausting way. He discovered feelings for Hermione he would have never guessed he had. Chose the safety of his family, once again, above his personal happiness. Found out what happened to the Rosier and Fawley families. And most importantly, scheduled a 'date' with Hermione Granger in four days.

A house elf popping into the room interrupted his mental recap. _Can I never get through an entire thought?_

"There is man saying he is Hairy Potters at the floos, Master," Dinky bowed and disapparated.

"What in the name of Merlin's beard does Potter want?" Draco thought as he meandered down to the North sitting room. A check of the floo only confirmed that The-Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die was trying to contact him.

"Dammit, Malfoy. It's really me. Can I please come through? I need to talk to you," the Potter shaped flames said angrily.

Pretending to ponder the request, Draco hummed and stroked his nonexistent facial hair. Potter growled, and with a small chuckle, Draco allowed Potter floo access.

Potter stumbled out with an ungraceful flourish, spewing ashes all over the floor. Before Draco could comment on the other man's ballerina-like grace, Potter said, "We need to talk about Hermione."

"Bloody hell," Draco moaned. "How many damn people are here to question me about Granger? Go talk to my mother, she's already asked every bloody invasive question imaginable," Draco huffed and began to walk back to the library.

"Malfoy, I think her and Ron are about to break up," Harry blurted, effectively halting Draco in his tracks.

"I'm intrigued, Potter," Draco said, slithering back to where Harry was standing, still covered in floo powder and ashes. "Do tell?" he smirked.

"No, no, no Malfoy. You tell me first, what is going on with you and Hermione," Potter commanded.

Draco sighed. _This again. Is it worth it? Good gossip is hard to come by, and Merlin knows Granger wouldn't tell me this on her own._ "What do you want to know?" he whined.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you. I'm thinking about releasing a chapter of scenes I cut out, tell me if that's something you want to see. I will still keep with weekly updates, so it wouldn't replace a chapter. Comment with thoughts. Have a great week!/_**


	14. Harry's Talk

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Hermione's week fell into a routine after that Tuesday. She would wake up, get Rosie ready, fix them a small breakfast, and then take Rosie to Little Wings. The little girl was shy at first to be around other children, but she warmed up to them and loved to come home and tell Hermione everything she did and learned. The little girl was growing on Hermione and in turn, Rosie was becoming attached to Hermione as well. Rosie's favorite part of everyday was reading time with Hermione. They would trade off on who read to who, and Rosie marveled at the amount of books Hermione had.

After Rosalinda was dropped off at school, Hermione would floo to Malfoy Manor for research. Malfoy had been acting a bit off the rest of the week. Hermione couldn't put her finger on it, but something had changed. They both sat there and researched in mostly silence. Their chats were still nice and intellectual, and they still bickered once a day. But something was off, and Hermione was slightly unsettled by the different tone.

Aside from different feeling she got around Draco, her week was rather boring. After work she would pick Rosie up from Andromeda's, and order food for dinner. Malfoy was right, she was getting used to someone else making her food, and Rosie was fascinated by take out as her mother didn't allow it.

After Rosie was read to and put to bed, Hermione would lay in bed and either read or attempt to talk to Ron. Their relationship was becoming even more strained. Ron wasn't being short-tempered or rude, but he conversed to a minimum and looked like he was uncomfortable when they did talk. After a rather awkward attempt to talk about their relationship Friday night, Hermione began to seriously plan breaking it off with Ron. She didn't want a fight to end her relationship, so she planned on sitting down and talking to him after 'work' that day. He once again gave the lame excuse of paperwork to cover for not babysitting Rose. His lack of participation lately was annoying Hermione to no end, so after she broke up with Ron, she would tell Mrs. Weasley why they were canceling the wedding, and take Rosie to her parent's house for the night. _Yes, that will work. It also allows me to get my side of the story out before he goes telling everyone I cheated on him again._ With a sigh, Hermione buried herself further into her bed and fell asleep.

When Hermione woke up on her much awaited Saturday morning, she groaned and tried to roll over and fall back asleep, but their was a little body in her way.

"Mine-ee... Mine-ee... There's a birdie out the window," Rosie whispered, laying next to Hermione.

Hermione turned and smiled at Rosie. The kid was the cutest thing in the morning. Normal parents would be annoyed, but Hermione was new at this, and those little eyes shining up at her when she woke up was adorable. "Hop up Rose. I'll get up and check on the owl, you can sleep for a few more minutes before we get you ready for a day with the Potters."

Rosalinda let Hermione off the bed, then curled up in the spot Hermione just vacated, blonde hair splayed everywhere, and let out a content sigh. Hermione looked back at the little girl and she frowned. She didn't want to think about giving Rosalinda back to her mother, so she opened the window and let the day over take her.

The Eagle owl was from Malfoy confirming their lunch outing. "After much deliberation, I decided not to cancel on you. -D.M." Hermione giggled softly, not noticing Ron's open eye watching her, and threw the letter in the bin. Before she could shut the window, another owl swooped in, this one more familiar than the others. "Hello, you," she cooed at the light brown, adolescent barn owl and gave him an owl treat. She took the letter from its outstretched leg and read, "Teddy is getting rowdy excited. Hurry up. -Ginny" Hermione grinned. It warmed her heart to see the two kids take a liking to each other so quickly. She tossed this note in the bin also, let the owl out, shut the window, and walked to the kitchen to start breakfast.

"Ron, we're leaving!" Hermione called from the door. When he stuck his un-groomed face out from their room, she added, "When you get back from work, we need to talk." She was dreading the talk that was about to come, but it needs to be done. She pushed down her rising discomfort and took Rosalinda's hand. "Bye."

Hermione apparated them to Grimauld Place. "Harry! Ginny! We're here!" Hermione announced upon their arrival.

She felt a tugging on her hand and Rosie was looking up at her with pleading eyes. She bent down, and Rosie whispered, "Teddee asked about mummy. What do I say?"

Hermione was stunned for a moment, then her mind kicked into overdrive. _How much can a five year old tell the world? Is it worth the risk. Never._ "You can tell him you miss your mummy, and she isn't here. But don't tell him who your mummy and daddy are. Okay?"

Rosie nodded her head, tears in her eyes. Hermione's heart dropped. This little girl has lost everything and put up with is so well. Hermione felt awful, after all, it was her fame that put Rosie in a position of danger. So, Hermione did what little she could do to help and wrapped the six year old up in a hug and held her close. "I'm so sorry. I will get you back to your mum as quickly as I can," she vowed. Rosie just gripped her tighter, sniffling. "Everything will be alright. You will have your family," Hermione mumbled, petting the young girls hair.

Harry walked in, about to greet the pair, then decided against it upon seeing the state Rosie was in. He gave Hermione a look that said 'I'll leave you to this', and walked back to help Ginny get the kids ready.

"If you want to go home, we can," Hermione offered softly, stroking Rosalinda's back. The little girl nuzzled into Hermione's neck for a few seconds before drawing back and smiling, "No, I'll stay." She spontaneously hugged Hermione. "I love you."

Rosie's words brought Hermione to tears. "I love you too," she squeaked out, tightening the hug for a moment, then letting go of the girl. "You'll be okay?" Hermione worried. The little girl nodded, beaming at Hermione. Hermione wiped a stray tear away and Rosie bounded up the stairs presumably to find Teddy. They went to the same school and were becoming fast friends.

"Hey, Hermione," Harry greeted. "What happened back there?"

"Just Rose being the sweetest thing on earth and me feeling awful that I'm the one that put her in danger." Hermione sighed; she sounded like Harry when he was going through his 'I'm the reason the world is going to Hell' phase. "What I mean is that if I wasn't followed by press, she would be safe to just hand back to her mother. I'm the reason she's separated from her mother. And the worst thing is, after one week with her, I don't want to give her back."

"I know how you feel. I don't know what to say. Luckily my kid is mine. You're strong and smart, you'll figure everything out and make it through it. Keep your mind off of when she will go and relish the time you have."

Hermione nodded solemnly. _I may be smart, but I'm way out of my element here._

"Now," Harry rubbed his hands together, excited. "Tell me about this date with Malfoy," he smirked.

"How do you know about that? I don't remember telling you." She eyed him suspiciously, running over their conversations in the past week.

"Ron was grumbling about it at work yesterday. Have you broken up with him by the way?"

"Tonight," Hermione quietly voiced.

"Do you know what you're going to say?"

"A load of 'I don't think our personalities fit', 'we argue too much', 'I love you, but I don't think it's working,'" she groaned. "I don't want this to end it a fight, but I'm not getting my hopes up. Just make sure he doesn't go around saying I was cheating on him again."

"I will. Ron's been a right git to you for a while. I'll be here for you if you need anything," he said sincerely.

"Thanks, Harry." She kissed him on the cheek and gave him a cheeky grin. "Don't let Ginny see you taking such good care of me. She may get jealous."

Harry turned pink and started sputtering. Ginny came in and grabbed Hermione into a quick hug. "We all take care of you 'Mione. Now, what do I hear about a date with the ferret?"

With the attention off himself, Harry piped in, "What are you two doing?"

"I'm just your source of entertainment," Hermione grumbled, but launched into her plan for lunch. "We're going to meet at the Leaky Cauldron, then walk to a small café in South London. I'll introduce him to the beauty that is specialty tea and sandwiches. Then, we will go see Love Actually, which I heard was good. Fitting for the time of year."

"A romantic comedy? You want Draco Malfoy to sit through two hours of girly romance?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Ugh! What do I take him to see then?" She whined, dropping into the nearest chair.

"Well," Harry pondered, sitting next to her. "How about Girl with a Pearl Earring? It's about a painting that I'm sure even Purebloods have heard of, and it has good reviews."

"What theater is even still showing it? It came out in August."

"The discount theater. It's in South London. It's called PeckhamPlex."

"I guess that will work." Hermione chewed on her lip for a moment, then asked, worry fringing her voice, "What if he doesn't like it?"

"He will. Trust me," Harry assured with a twinkle in his eye. _Something is up._

"Okay," Hermione replied warily.

"This is so weird. Hermione Jean Granger is going on a date with Draco Malfoy while she's still with my brother, her fiancé. Put me is St. Mungos," Ginny joked.

"It is not a date!" Hermione protested, blushing furiously.

"Mmmhmmm."

"Ugh. You guys are impossible. I need to leave anyway. I'm going to say goodbye to Rose." She got up, grumbling, "I don't see why you both are so accepting of this."

"Because you're happy again," Ginny called out to Hermione's retreating figure. She turned back to Harry. "This is going to be good," she conspired with a wicked grin.

Harry smirked back, remembering last night with Malfoy.

"What do you want to know?"

"Do you have feelings for her?"

"Damn. You get straight to it, don't you? Better than my mother—" Draco stalled.

"Answer the question Malfoy," Harry interrupted his weak attempt at avoiding the question.

"I don't know," he huffed and sat down gracefully on the edge of the sofa. He ran his hand through his hair, and looked over to an expectant Potter. "What makes you so high and mighty to come into my Manor and demand to know my feelings for Hermione?" he growled.

"Because after working with you, Hermione finally realized how incompatible Ron and her are. Plus, you just admitted you have feelings for her," Harry added smugly.

Draco growled. "I'm done with you people twisting my words. If I wanted that I would have asked for an interview with Rita Skeeter. Why do you even want to know Potter? So you can go squeal to Granger and she can have a good laugh?"

"No. Because I think she cares for you."

Draco stopped his reply. _Granger might be attracted to me. That opens so many more windows for teasing her. Would she ever date someone like me?_ "I already know she cares. Why else would someone help _me_?"

"God Malfoy," Harry exhaled. "She cares more about you than some pity case. She gets along better with you than Ron. She talks about you all the time recently. She loves Rose so much, she feels awful that she don't want to let her go."

"Of course she told you about my brilliant history," he grumbled.

"Yes. After all, my wife babysits her, and Hermione wanted a trained auror to know what was going on. I had to make an Unbreakable Vow not to mention anything to anyone besides her and you."

Draco was amazed at how through Hermione was. How much she actually cared. She loves his daughter. She _talks_ about _him_ to _Potter._ It filled him with immense pleasure. She cared for him. "I may have some affection for Granger," Draco mumbled.

Harry looked pleased. "How much does blood mean to you?"

Despite knowing he would encounter this question eventually, Draco became suddenly furious. He put up a quick Silencio, then descended into his rant. "Did you not go through the same bloody war I did? What do I need to prove to everyone that I'm not going to go around spouting Pureblood supremacy and killing mudbloods? I could always have a half blood offspring. Oh wait, I already did that!" Draco seethed.

"Could you not be so damn irritating and just see my point?" Harry barked. "I want to make sure that Hermione's not wasting her time."

"I don't believe in all that crap anymore. It all went away when she was tortured on my drawing room floor. Happy Potter?"

"Very," Harry replied wryly. "Why do you always have to be so dramatic? You could have simply said that you didn't. Ugh. Whatever. I don't have to see what she sees in you. But what I do want to know is what you see in her."

"We're not at a girl's sleepover Potter. You already know I like her. Can't you just live with that?" Draco asked, exasperated. When Harry shook his head and crossed his arms impatiently, Draco sighed and answered, "She's intelligent. Someone who can match my wit. We have the best debates. She's passionate. Caring. Pretty fun if you dig deep enough. She is beautiful. She's classy in public, but down to earth when we're alone. She pushes me, and no one else ever does that."

It was weird to not only openly express his emotions, but to do so with Harry Bloody Potter. Draco was still reeling from his bout of humanity when the man asked another question. "What would you do if you found out she felt the same way?"

Draco pondered that. _What would I do? Tease her mercilessly. Break up with Astoria. Invite her to spend a weekend at his summer home in France. Seeing her in one of those muggle bikinis would be very rewarding._ He shut down his train of thought there. His childhood rival was still in the room and diving into that fantasy would not end well in the presence of others. He decided on a more diplomatic answer. After all, if he ever wanted to pursue anything with the Golden Girl, he would have to go through the Boy-Who-Lived. "I would make sure my mother and father were far, far away, and ask her to dinner."

Harry nodded slowly, accepting the answer. "I've answered your sodding questions. Do I get my reward yet?" Draco asked cheekily.

Harry thought for a second. "One last question. Could you love her? I can't imagine what would happen if she couldn't be in your daughter's life anymore. She truly loves that little girl. And she deserves someone who will love her and take care of her."

"There's that question I've been trying to avoid," Draco internally groaned. Draco knew his answer would send him on one of two paths. A 'no' would mean that Potter would discourage any kind of relationship with him to Hermione. She would inevitably agree with Harry because they've been friends forever, and Draco would never have a chance even if he wanted one. If he said yes, Harry would think Draco was suddenly some good, mushy person, and him and his conniving wife would play matchmaker. Draco didn't like either of these options, so he stayed in between. "Maybe. My parents had an arranged marriage and learned to love each other. It's not impossible, but I have only just gotten to know her as anything other than the mudblood I would pick on in school." _Very diplomatic._ Draco mentally patted himself on the back.

Harry already got more information out of Draco than he thought he would. The last question was pushing his luck, and he knew it. The last question would have set him off if Draco answered yes or no. There was no way after this little time that Draco could be able to say he could love Hermione and be honest, and of course if he said no, that would mean he wasn't at the maturity Hermione deserves. Harry held back a smile, unwilling to show Malfoy that he got exactly what he wanted upon barging into the Manor.

"Now Potter, what's going on with Weasel and Granger?" Draco demanded. He answered enough of Harry's questions and was done sharing his emotions. _If Potter asks more more bleeding ques—._

Harry was beginning to feel a bit bad telling Malfoy about Hermione's private conversation with him, but he did owe Malfoy. "She came to me this morning asking what I would do if she broke up with Ron. She wanted to know how much Ginny and I fight. She said she fights more with Ron than you, and she sees you more often. He wants her to be a stay at home wife and take care of everything that has to do with Rose, and she isn't having any of that."

Draco gritted his teeth. The Weasel was never his favorite person, but he only got worse every time Draco hear something about him. "Yes, my mother mainly took care of me, but it's a father's role to raise a kid too. Hell, I would be grateful to do everything for Rosalinda. Just to have her, really. Hermione deserves more than that," he ranted.

"Yeah, Hermione loves kids, but she's a hardcore feminist and that doesn't mesh well with Ron's traditional values. Add that to the fact that he is very hot-headed and she is stubborn, and you have a match made in Hell. I'm just glad she's finally seeing that. She seems pretty resolute now that I told her I would support her. And I think you would be good for her. Ron's a smart strategist, but he's nothing on Hermione's intelligence. At least you come close. She needs someone who will support her and stand beside her. You seem to have that, and I want her to be happy."

Draco was about to comment when Harry held up a finger, silencing him, and continued, "She deserves better than you. Know that. She deserves better than any man on the face of this planet. But, she seems to like you. So, you will treat her like she is the most precious person alive, because she is. Fights happen but don't break her heart, because there is an army of people who will curse you into a pile of flesh if you dare hurt her. Understood?"

All Draco could do was nod. He wasn't surprised that Harry was threatening to kill him. That sectumsempra curse in sixth year taught him that the boy with the scar wasn't as harmless as he seemed. He has the scars for memory. What surprised Draco was how intense Harry was about Hermione. All through school, Potter and Weasel treated her like their personal answer sheet, hardly like a friend. So when Harry showed so much anger toward the thought of Hermione's unhappiness, Draco was perplexed. Either Harry had grown some very strong brotherly love toward Hermione, or he was in love with her but resigned to unrequited love. Before Draco could begin to interrogate him, Harry stood up suddenly and blurted, "I think we've talked long enough. Goodnight, Malfoy. Good luck on your date. Bring flowers."

Harry made it through the floor before Draco could grab him. Once he was safe in his home, he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He saw the spark in Draco's eyes. He knew that the other man was about to question him, and Harry wouldn't have that.

Hermione was sitting at the bar of the Leaky Cauldron waiting for Draco. She was there ten minutes early to mentally prepare herself. She was willingly putting herself in a situation alone with Malfoy, and she kind of enjoyed it, but she was nervous. So nervous that her butterbeer sat in front of her, only a sip removed, mocking the butterflies in her stomach. No matter how many times she told Harry and Ron this wasn't a date, it was beginning to feel like one, and she was as jittery as a third year.

"Early as always," a familiar man whispered into her ear. She jumped from her stool and clutched her wand. "Whoa there" Draco put his hands up. "I didn't mean to scare you." He was wearing black dress pants and a button up grey shirt. _Very Malfoy._

"I wasn't scared," she muttered indignantly.

"Of course," he smugly smiled. "Now, where are we going?" Draco gestured to the general direction of Muggle London.

"Follow me." Hermione beamed as she lead him out to the muggle world.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you. The next chapter will follow soon, hopefully./_**


	15. The 'Date'

_**As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters.**_

They walked contently for twenty minutes chatting happily about anything and everything. Draco was polite and wanted to know everything there was to know about his daughter and her keeper. Hermione wanted to know about life as a Malfoy, it always interested her how he became so spoiled. They bonded over their mutually lonely childhoods in which they were both only children and didn't have many friends. Hermione was slightly envious of his privileged upbringing until he told her what went on that he didn't brag about. His parents mainly hired nannies to keep him occupied and teach him lessons as they were hardly around for the little things. He grew up hearing the Pureblood propaganda from birth, and since he had no friends that weren't from his father's circles, he never heard anything different until Hogwarts.

Draco was surprised to hear that Hogwart's Golden Girl didn't have the perfect childhood either. Both of her parents were dentists and were always working. She grew up reading because that was the only thing she could do that they wouldn't yell at her for while she was at the family practice after school. She was picked on in her primary school just as bad as she was at Hogwarts. Draco felt a twinge of regret that he only carried on misery that was long standing, but Hermione carried on to lighter subjects. She knew everything in all the classes to prove she was worthy of magic but also because it was still new and wondrous to her, and she wanted to know everything.

She reveled in the knowledge that Draco's daughter was a bookworm. Draco then surprised her by telling her that he was quite fond of reading, he had to be to be second in their year at Hogwarts, and he had a small library of his favorite books in his sitting room attached to his suite at the Manor. She surprised him by asking to see the novels. He never thought she would willing want to see his room, but he should have factored her love for books into his calculation of her personality. He agreed, and she went back to happily questioning him on his years at Hogwarts.

"We're here!" Hermione announced, interrupting Draco's story about getting brooms for the quidditch team in second year, and dragging him into the café.

Draco was in for a culture shock as he sat down at the small table for two. There were muggles everywhere. He didn't recognize half of the items on the chalk menu. There were women in aprons bustling around the small space, barely avoiding knocking over tea cups, taking orders. There was an assortment of strange people in the place. Big gruff men and dainty businesswomen sat at the same table. It was loud. The chaos was seeping into his consciousness. He was finding himself very anxious to flee until Hermione drew his attention back to herself. She was beaming, radiant really. "I love this place. I'm sorry I bought you here when it was so crowded. I didn't think," she rambled.

He found himself telling her it was fine, even though he felt far from it. To distract himself from his environment, he handed her a small bouquet of pink and white camellias.

"What are these for?" Hermione asked, taking the flowers. She was confused that Draco would bring flowers to something she was sure he didn't consider a date.

"Orders from my mother," he smirked at an inside joke. The brief diversion calmed him, and he let Hermione explain the menu. After almost half an hour spent on learning about muggle food, he was comfortable with muggle lunch cuisine. He ordered a french dip sandwich and lavender lemon tea. She, on the other hand, went with a more daring choice: a veggie sandwich with everything from alfalfa sprouts to cream cheese piled on it and Tiramisu Roobios tea.

"Why is this so messy? This was not in the description," Draco huffed as he attempted to control his sandwich from falling apart.

All Hermione could do was laugh. His scowl only made her laugh harder.

"You muggles all eat like dogs," he growled indignantly.

"You purebloods are snooty and closed-minded," she quipped with a smile.

He finally smirked back. "Touché. So what's after this?" He asked gesturing to his half eaten and throughly mangled sandwich.

Hermione pretended to contemplate this. "Well, we could go see my parents." He blanched at this. "Or we could see a film."

"The film sounds appropriate," he replied quickly. "What exactly am I signing up for?"

"You'll see," she grinned and threw a few notes on the table. She grabbed his hand and practically dragged him out of the restaurant.

They casually talked along their walk to the cinema until Hermione mentioned, "I'm actually quite happy I got to know you again. You're not like the little entitled brat I knew in school."

Draco stopped them in the middle of a busy sidewalk. "Thank you," he said sincerely, but slightly awkward trying to have a sentimental moment being swarmed by busy Londoners.

"For what?" Hermione asked, perplexed. She pulled them into a small alley to get them away from the traffic.

"I don't know. Giving me a daughter I thought was long gone. Forgiving me for being a little shit as a kid. Giving me something meaningful to fill my days with. Taking me to eat messy food and see a muggle film." He took her hand and squeezed it.

"Thank you, Draco," she said, pulling him into a hug.

He didn't know how to respond to that kind of affection from her. "What for?" he questioned while patting her on the back lightly until she released. She confused him more and more each day. First she lies for him, gets him to care for her, asks him on a date, then hugs him. It was way too much for Draco to handle in just one week.

"For letting me get to know you and for making my life fun again," she smirked.

He smiled, a bit sad their serious conversation, and consequently their hug, was over. "Was it ever fun?" He teased, bumping her shoulder. He really liked the contact.

"Did I ever tell you about breaking out of Gringotts?" she asked with a sly smile. She watched his face go from affectionate teasing to wonder. She knew that they would probably miss the first showing of the film at this pace, but the conversation was worth the merciless teasing from Ginny for being out late.

"Granger! You've been withholding. You really weren't a goody toe shoes where you? Tell me everything," he demanded, sounding like Lavender Brown asking for gossip and looking like her too.

"Somebody had to keep those two dunderheads out of trouble. Half the time I just got sucked into it," she grumbled remembering all the times they got in trouble because Harry or Ron had a bright idea that landed them in a bad spot.

"You sound like Severus," Draco said in jest. That was his first time joking about Snape since his death. It was nice to remember him in a good light, though Severus would roll over in his grave knowing Draco was comparing Granger to him.

"I do, don't I?" Hermione laughed. "How about this. I'll tell you the story as we walk. We're already late for the film. We can always get tea after and talk some more," she offered.

"Sure." Draco was acutely aware that she was offering to spend more time with him. The thought made him smile, and she returned it and set off telling him about becoming Bellatrix, the Thief's Downfall, an enchanted goblet, and breaking out on the back of a dragon. He was amazed. He always imagined her as a prude that did nothing but read and study, but the more he learned the more admiration he had for her. Now he understood why she would prefer time reading. It was much more safe than her other activities.

They just sat down when the previews finished. Draco did know about the painting the film was based off of and was surprisingly eager to see the show, something Hermione was all too willing to rib him about.

"I expected more pinched facial features and moaning about touching the same seat as a muggle. Or some good complaints on how muggles have nothing on the wizard world," Hermione whispered.

"Oh shut up," he barked in a whisper turning away from her.

She giggled silently beside him, and he couldn't help but let out a chuckle or two at her antics.

"The film is starting," she said in wonder, squeezing his hand quickly.

He was about to ask her if touching his hand was really necessary, then the music started and the title came on the screen. All Draco could do was gape in amazement. It was huge and wondrous.

The course of the moving picture went the same way. Hermione was quietly watching the film, occasionally commenting to Draco. While he sat enraptured through the whole thing. She chose something he knew about, which touched him, and she brought him at a time when no one else was at the cinema. The amount of thought she put into the 'date' stirred many feelings inside of him, the main emotion being his growing affection for her, but also smugness for being thought about more than the Weasel, satisfaction, and a hint of sadness, knowing that he hadn't done anything for her to deserve any of it.

At the end of the show, they both got up and silently walked out of the theater, both in their own thoughts. Once they reached the sidewalk to go back to the Leaky Cauldron, he pulled her to a stop and blurted, "Should I marry Astoria?"

Hermione was briefly in shock, thoughts swirling everywhere. _Why is he asking_ _ **me**_ _this? Do I even have a say? Does he count this as a real date? Do I? Kind of. I like Draco. I really do. But do I have the right to discourage him if he loves her? No. Ugh._ "If you love her," Hermione replied weakly. She had no idea what to do in this situation. She's never read anything about being engaged, starting to be attracted to a childhood bully, taking care of his illegitimate child, and deciding if he should marry his girlfriend.

"I want a real answer, Hermione!" He argued. "If I marry her, I can have Rosie. I've been selfish by choosing my happiness over hers! Just tell me that I'm not that bad of a person!"

"I don't know, Draco! I can't tell you what to do with your life. I have no say!"

"You can tell me what I've done isn't wrong!" Draco cried.

"But I can't!" Hermione yelled back.

"So you think I'm a evil. You were just lying to my mother and me this whole time?" he demanded stone faced. She was silent a second and that was enough for him to begin to stomp away towards they way they came.

She ran after him, glad she shrunk the flowers he gave her otherwise they would have been squashed. "Draco! Wait," she called, but he was too fast. He ducked into an alley and by the time she got there he was gone.

She slumped against the wall where she last saw him. _How could I let this go so wrong? We were having such a good time. I should have said what I felt. Said no. Told him he wasn't selfish. Told him that there are other women out there who love his daughter more and more each day._ The carefully drawn lines Hermione made when she began working with Malfoy were smudged. She didn't know what to do.

"He's not worth it," said a voice from the end of the ally. Hermione looked up to find short, curvy woman with lightly tanned skin, brown-blonde hair and striking blue eyes. The woman smiled at her and walked on, but the sentiment wasn't lost in Hermione. She got up and headed to Harry's. She wasn't going to let one fight with Malfoy send her into tears in an ally alone. It was only five and there was still much more to be done. So, when she was sure no one was paying attention, she apparated to Harry's place to tell him all about her 'date'.

Draco was home sitting on his bed mentally kicking himself. As always, he ruined the best thing that had happened to him in a long while. _Of course it wasn't Granger's place to tell me anything about Astoria. What was I thinking? I should have–_ His thought process was cut off my a brilliant idea. He rushed into his personal sitting room and threw in some floo powder. When the floo opened he called, "Potter! Tell me what to do. I screwed up."

Harry walked into the room a few seconds later with Hermione following behind. Draco's heart sank. He wasn't prepared to see her so soon even though he knew he would have to apologize sometime. He managed to keep his composure through the flames, but internally he was freaking out. _What do I say? I'm sorry for freaking out and getting mad at you because I think I'm a terrible person, and I really wanted you to tell me not to marry Astoria. That sounds desperate, and Malfoys aren't desperate._ Either Hermione didn't notice him, or she was avoiding him because she gave Harry a hug and walked out of the room as if she didn't hear Draco's call. A part of him was relieved he wouldn't have to deal with her so soon, but the other half was dreading seeing her again if she was mad enough to avoid him.

Harry walked over to the floo and let Draco in. Unlike Potter, Draco stepped out of the floo gracefully without a hint of ash on his button up, something Harry was quick to point out. "How do you do that? Just walk out of the floo without getting anything on you?" he implored.

"Years of practice and making my mother angry because I got ash on her precious rugs. Now, I need you to tell me what to do about Hermione," Draco practically demanded sitting down on the cleanest couch in the drawing room.

"Leave her alone for a bit." Draco gave him a 'are-you-kidding-me' raised eyebrow. "I'm serious. She likes her alone time, and she's also going through something right now and doesn't need anymore drama." Harry looked around, then put up a silencing charm. "She's going to break up with Ron tonight. Wait until tomorrow to apologize."

Draco was about to interrupt and tell Potter that Malfoys do not apologize when he was cut off. "Save your pride. Just give her some time. You're not my favorite person, but she seems to like you, and she doesn't sleep over here when she's mad at you. So, do this right. We all want her to be happy and sleeping in her own flat." The Boy-Who-Lived looked sleep-deprived and disheveled.

"Are you okay?" Draco inquired. He would normally never show any sort of care for Potter, but the man was helping him so pride had to be sacrificed.

Harry grimaced. "James keeps crying and wouldn't go to sleep. I would tell you to never have kids, but you even beat me to it. Just be grateful you missed these years."

Draco would never admit to anyone, not even Hermione in their later years, that he read over a hundred parenting books over the six years he didn't have Rosalinda. "Let me see him."

Harry lead Malfoy up to James' room hesitantly. He could see Draco changed, otherwise he wouldn't have testified for him, but that didn't stop his natural instinct to keep the Ex-Death Eater far away from his firstborn. "Here we are," he announced reluctantly when they reached the crib containing a wailing child.

Draco deftly picked up James, giving him a quick once over. He felt James' head, stomach, then after a quick search of his onesie announced, "he has a spider bite. Some topical pain potion should calm him." He didn't notice Harry's gaping until he put down the little guy and turned to leave. "You'll catch flies Potter. Get the cream. I'm leaving."

As he strode passed Potter toward the floo, the man finally seemed to click into motion and ran to the bathroom to get the potion. This gave Draco a clean exit without any messy questions. He walked through the green flames so quickly he didn't even see Hermione watching the entire scene from the hall.

"How did he know that?" Harry pressed.

"I don't know! Just because I've been working with him for a little over a week doesn't mean he's told me all of his secrets!"

"Well what are you going to do about the little spat you all had today?" he continued to interrogate her.

"I don't know." She sighed. "I'll tell him the truth. But first, I need to break up with my fiancée. I'm a busy woman, Harry Potter." She began walking towards the fireplace with conviction in her steps.

"Don't break Ron's heart too hard!" he called after her retreating figure.

"I'll _try_ " was the last thing Harry heard before the whooshing of his Floo. I should start charging them for Floo powder, he thought and walked up to his newly silent office to get done with some paperwork before Ginny got home.

"Ron!" Hermione shouted when she walked out of the fireplace to her messy flat. Most of the lights were off and the house was silent. Her resolve was melting every second his flaming hair didn't surface.

A minute of worrying later, her fiancée's head peaked out of the closet where Rosie's room was. Her eyes narrowed and venom filled her. " _Why_ exactly were you in Rose's room?"

"I'm an auror," he puffed, coming out of the closet fully. "I was checking to make sure she didn't have anything dangerous in her room."

"Why would she Ronald? She's six!" Hermione practically shouted. She knew why Ron was in her room and it angered her more than it should. "You think that she is harbouring something from Malfoy!"

"She is his spawn after all!" Ron spat.

"She has never even seen him!" she said incredulously.

"You never said that," he said in a quieter tone, somewhere between ashamed and angry that she withheld information.

"Because it wasn't my story to tell. You should have trusted me to keep us safe."

"Trust again!" Ron's temper flared. "You didn't _**trust**_ me to know anything!

"Telling you anything could get her killed! I'm keeping her safe!"

"What about me?" he screamed. "You put a child you've known for a week at higher priority than your soon-to-be-husband!"

"You're jealous of a little girl! You not knowing Malfoy's secret wouldn't harm you, but it keeps her safe! Not even Harry and the Minister know!" she shouted, unbelieving of his dense view of events. "If you had concerns you should have told them to me this week you've spent ignoring me!" Hermione accused.

"I wouldn't ignore you if you would keep me in the loop!" He threw a note at Hermione. "Care to explain the giggling? I'm sure your lunch with the ferret was more than just a friendly thing. I've tried to be understanding, but-"

"No," Hermione cut him off in an icy tone. All it took was a glance to see it was the letter Draco wrote to her that morning. "I'm not explaining anything to you anymore. You don't trust me. You think you've been understanding?" she laughed menacingly. "You have fought against me working with Malfoy from my first day. You insist he's a monster, he treats me with more respect than you do. Leave," she demanded, frigid anger radiating from her.

Ron had enough common sense not to fight her. He walked into their room and began packing a night's worth of clothes until he heard her order, "all of it." He realized what was happening and was about to turn around and argue when she announced in a dead tone, "We're over, Ron. No more arguing. No more distrust. I'm done."

He knew he should fight for her. Tell her he was wrong and he'll be better, but he knew that after saying that for four years, nothing was going to change. As much as he hated her at the moment, he didn't want to cause her pain by keeping her where she didn't want to be. What boiled his blood was that he knew who she would run to after this. "I hope you and Malfoy are happy together," he snapped as he pushed past her towards the door.

"Goodbye, Ronald."

He slammed the door and appartated to the Leaky Cauldron. Upon getting into his room, he broke everything in sight. Once he smashed the lamp on the floor, he fell onto the lopsided bed and cried. "She's really gone."

"He's really gone," Hermione murmured into her tear soaked hands. She had been curled up, sobbing on the sofa since he left. She didn't regret anything, but it hurt to have him walk away without fighting.

After an hour of crying, Hermione decided it was time to get her life back together. She had a six year old who depended on her, a job, and friends. There was no time to fall apart over something she knew would happen anyway. So, she stood up shakily and took a scalding shower. The hot water rinsed away her worries, and she came out refreshed. She dressed in her relaxing night clothes, got some of Rosie's toys from her room and flooed back to Harry's to pick up Rosalinda. Everything wasn't alright, but it would be, and all Hermione needed was hope to continue on.

"Astoria, we need to talk."

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Next up will be the aftermath. ;) Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you./_**


	16. Rocky Endings (Part 1)

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

"Astoria, we need to talk," Draco said flatly upon Flooing the Greengrass Manor.

He could see a head pop into the room, then disappear quickly. A minute later Astoria came into view followed distantly by her sister Daphne.

"Hello Daphne," Draco droned. "I'd like a word with your sister. Privately."

The older girl regarded Draco for a minute before heading out of the room reluctantly. Daphne knew Draco well after spending a great deal of her childhood around him, and no doubt didn't trust him not to break her sister's heart. With that in mind, Draco cast a silencing charm upon entering the Greengrass' sitting room. She was assuredly listening outside the door.

"What is this about?" Astoria asked eyeing his wearily.

"Do you want kids?" He asked deciding to get right to the point of the matter.

Astoria was thrown off by his directness. It took her a second to catch on to his purpose, but once she understood that this was a deal breaking test, she gave him her answer. "Eventually."

"Why not now?"

"I'd rather wait until I had a firm relationship before I bring a kid into this world," she said hoping he got the hint. Astoria was very sick of hanging on to a man that wasn't outwardly interested in taking this further. She was twenty one, for Merlin's sake, and she didn't want to waste her prime years on someone who wasn't interested in marriage.

"How many?" Draco probed.

"One. Enough for an heir." _And for everything to shrink back to what is used to be,_ Astoria thought.

"Why not more?"

"I don't think I could handle more. I want a quiet life." She smiled, assuming he also agreed. After all, who wants a loud house full of children? That's tiring and all too plebeian.

"Do you plan on raising your kid with pureblood ideals?" Draco asked. He was almost certain he knew her answer, but better safe than sorry.

Astoria's face morphed into unadulterated anger. Her visage was red, eyes narrowed, and fingertips crackling. Draco had never seen her this mad in his life. It was fascinating. "Draco! I went through the same war you did! Do you really expect me to brainwash my kid into thinking the same hogwash we did? I've had enough of the hate. I want a quiet life. I had enough commotion as a teenager. You must really be thick to think that I would—"

"Would you marry someone who already had a kid. Hypothetically?" he interjected keeping his face devoid of emotion. He didn't want her to know that he had a daughter until necessary, granted this relationship even continued past his test.

She eyed him, still pulsing with rage. "What are you insinuating?" she spat.

"Nothing. Purely hypothetical," he lied. Quite believably.

"I don't want to be set up with some friend, if you don't want to be with me just say it!" she said, fire rising in her eyes.

"I'm not setting you up. I just want to know how you would handle certain situations."

"I don't need a bloody test from you, Draco Malfoy!"

"Calm down, Astoria. I just want to stop wasting time. We have never really talked about kids and marriage, and I don't want to waste our time if we're not compatible," he explained simply.

She was still unhappy, but she had cooled considerably after his explanation. She managed to politely answer after a minute of deep breathing. "If _you_ had a kid, I would be uncomfortable. I'd still want a kid of my own. I could handle it, but I would rather not put myself in a situation like that."

"Would you treat the kid any different because it wasn't yours?" Draco twinged inwardly; Astoria was his only hope for near-immediate protection of his daughter, but it seemed that she wouldn't be a fantastic mum for Rosie. She must have noticed a change in his demeanor, because she replied diplomatically.

"I would try not to. But, there always is that period of getting to know a kid that doesn't happen with one of your own."

Astoria may not seem to be a great mother, but she was acceptable. The only thing he had left to determine was their compatibility personality wise. He loved his mother, and he too had a flair for dramatics, but he didn't want yet another woman to put him and his daughter through excruciatingly long formal parties. The best way to determine this is to ask about the one party every young woman dreams about. "How big of a wedding do you want?" he asked.

She gave him a dazzling smile. Any trace of residual anger had disappeared to make way for the bliss of her imaginary wedding. "Big but not too big," she giddily explained. "A couple hundred people as guests for the reception but just family and friends for the ceremony. The ceremony would be held in the backyard, then the reception would be at the Manor. Spring. We would have a five to six course meal, then our dance. Maybe a—"

Draco was about interrupt and tell her that maybe they wouldn't work out, when the door creaked open and Daphne peered in. He lost his nerve seeing her scrutinizing glare. "I better go," Draco said quickly before cowardly dashing to the fireplace back to Malfoy Manor.

"What did you two talk about?" Daphne inquired, fully stepping into the room.

"Kids and weddings," Astoria sighed dreamily

"With Draco Malfoy?" _There's no way. This is Draco we're talking about,_ Daphne thought.

"Do you think he wants to marry me?" her younger sister asked, eyes hopeful.

"Maybe," Daphne replied dazed. _Draco Bloody Malfoy is actually talking kids with my sister. Either he's finally been hit on the head a little too hard, or he came to his senses._

Astoria smiled gleefully. Maybe he was finally seeing her the way she wanted him to. Maybe, just maybe, Astoria Greengrass would get the man she wanted.

"Rose!" Hermione called. She finally pulled herself together and flooed to Grimmauld Place to pick up Rose. She had a bag with the essentials already packed: clothes, toiletries, toys for Rose, and books. She planned on taking Rose to the Granger's for the night. Hermione didn't care for a run in with Ron while he moved out. She wasn't emotionally stable enough to deal with him again and decided to avoid the flat to keep her sanity. She was _not_ going to let him guilt her into taking him back again, and no matter how childish, avoiding him was the easiest way to hold her ground. Well, that's what she told herself, anyway.

"So, I take it everything went alright?" Harry asked as he came down the stairs, Rose following politely.

"Not the best, but I did it," she sighed. Hermione knew Harry would understand what she was saying, and she would explain it better tomorrow when there wasn't a six year-old listening.

"I'll see you tomorrow then," Harry said giving her a small smile.

Rosie ran up to her and grabbed her hand. She looked up at Hermione and smiled brightly before she began to tell her sit-in-mother everything about her day. "I played es'ploding snap with Teddy! I won! He showed me his broom. It's so cool. It can go this high!" The little girl gestured to the top of her head. Once Hermione nodded, she continued, "Teddy can make his hair just like mine! We also played…" Rose recounted her entire day up until they apparated to the Granger. The unfamiliar place only deterred her story for a few moments, after which she picked up where she left off until they reached the front door of Hermione's parent's house. "Where are we?" she asked. "This isn't home."

"No, it isn't," Hermione explained. "We're visiting my parent's tonight. We need to make sure we have our story right before we go in though. Okay?" Rosie was listening with rapt attention and nodded vigorously to show she understood. The little girl loved being apart plans, and was obviously excited to do whatever Hermione wanted. "They think you're their niece. They will be very sad thinking your parents and their brother and his wife died. Understand?"

Rosalinda contemplated the situation for a minute. After thinking she obviously thought she was up to the challenge and smiled. She hugged Hermione and whispered, "Imma good act-ress."

Hermione rapped on the door. A moment later, an older woman with short, but unruly, curly hair opened the door. "Hermione!" she exclaimed, pulling her daughter into a tight hug. After releasing her daughter, she quickly turned around and yelled, "Dan! Hermione's here!" Turning back around, beaming, Emma caught sight of Rosalinda standing slightly behind Hermione. "Oh," the woman squeaked softly. "Rose," she cooed sadly, pulling Rosie into a tight embrace. She stroked Rosie's hair and sniffled.

Dan trotted down the stairs to find his wife curled around a small girl. He looked briefly confused before his eyes found his daughter, and he lit up. He was a tall man with thick salt and pepper hair. His reading glasses dangled from his neck from a chord, and he pulled them off, setting them on a small side table before pulling his daughter into a bear hug. "Hi, daddy," Hermione chirped. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, princess," he said, pulling his daughter away to have a good look at her. "You need to visit more," he stated simply.

"I know, daddy," Hermione smiled.

"Dan," Emma called, softer this time. "Look who else came." She stepped back to show a very shy Rosalinda.

Dan smiled at his niece. Sadness in his eyes. Probably wistfully remembering his brother and all the mischief they would get into.

The memory charm had Dan and Emma believing that his brother and sister-in-law died in an automobile accident, though his bother was actually vacationing in New Zealand. Hermione felt guilt rip through her. She took away the memory of their only daughter once, and now she made her parents think their loved ones were dead. She hated how much suffering she caused her parents. What hurt her the most is that even though they would be disappointed in her, they would still forgive and love her, even when she didn't deserve it. The only thing that held her together was looking at Rosalinda and knowing that she was protecting her.

"Come into the sitting room. You can tell us what brought you to us," Emma announce, breaking Hermione's train of thought, and leading them into the room.

As Hermione and her parents were talking, Rosie laid her head down in Hermione's lap and fell asleep to Hermione's fingers running through her little head of hair. When she started snoring softly, Emma peered down to make sure she was asleep, then asked, "So, what's the real reason you came to visit us?"

Hermione had told her parents that she came to make sure they were okay after the loss of her aunt and uncle, both Dan and Emma nodded along, but they were not convinced. Hermione smirked at her mother's intuition and replied, "Let me put her to bed, and I'll give you guys the full story."

Hermione cradled Rosie and slowly took the little girl up to her old bedroom. The six-year-old was much heavier than Hermione cared to carry, but she didn't want to wake the sleeping angel. After giving Rose a kiss and a soft smile, she headed back down to her parents.

She tiredly back down on the couch, she breathed, "I broke up with Ron." She continued to tell them about the fights and the rocky few months of her relationship. And Malfoy.

Her parents took the news in stride. Her father wanted to kill Ronald for making his daughter cry, but he was also upset that his sports buddy wasn't going to be coming back. Her mother was contemplative. She didn't care all too much for Ronald, so she was not terribly upset. After all, her mother was the largest advocate for 'You know I love your boyfriend, but your personalities just don't match.' Her mother was most interested in Malfoy. She had heard about a 'little blonde git' that tormented her daughter through school, but the man Hermione was describing was much different than the petty school bully.

"Is this the same Malfoy that called you names in school?" Emma asked.

Hermione hesitated. On one hand, she wanted to tell her parents the truth about everything, but on the other hand, she knew they were not nearly as forgiving of past grievances against their daughter. Hermione then remembered that she altered her parent's memories again, and guilt won. She told them everything, minus the small bit about Rose being his daughter.

"Hmmm." Her father hummed. "I still want to murder the boy for letting my daughter be tortured, but I can understand his motives. Would that Voldy-lord have killed him if he helped?"

"Eventually," Hermione said distantly. "Probably not until Malfoy saw his parents die."

Dan and Emma looked appalled. They knew that there was a psychomaniac trying to kill their daughter, but they never realized why anyone would ever follow someone like that. Now, they understood a bit better.

"What is this Malfoy boy's given name?" Dan asked.

"Draco."

Emma murmured, "Odd." Then asked, "Are you dating him now?"

Hermione spluttered. "No," she choked out. "I just broke up with Ron tonight."

"So, you will date this boy after the proper grieving time?"

"No!" Hermione said impudently. "He's my coworker."

"Be careful of men that already have children," he father warned.

Hermione was simply flabbergasted. That her father thought her biggest worry should be Draco's daughter, and her mother insisted that she will be dating Draco Malfoy was a brain scrambler, but she didn't have the energy to come up with a defense. So, Hermione sighed in defeat and bid her parents goodnight. There was no use fighting an idea once it got in her mother's brain. Once upstairs, she headed to the guest bedroom. It was odd feeling for Hermione to sleep in a room other than her own, but she knew she could not stand to wake up Rose, so she slipped under the quilt her grandma Granger made and fell asleep, thoughts of Ron and Malfoy swirling through her unconscious mind.

"Molly?" Hermione called as she entered the Burrow. After waking up in the morning, Rose and Hermione joined Dan and Emma for a breakfast of sausage, eggs, and toast before Hermione bid her parents goodbye and took Rose to primary school. Hermione knew her first stop needed to be the Burrow to see Molly, so she flooed Joseph to tell him she would be running behind. Ron had the tendency to be ridiculously dramatic when he was upset, and he would often share such stories with his mother. Knowing an angry Molly Weasley was a force to be reckoned with, she decided to get the first word in before Ronald could tell his mother a fantastical story.

"Hermione, dear? Is that you?" Molly called from the living room. Hermione followed the sound of her would-be-mother-in-law's voice and almost ran into the woman as she was exiting the room. "What's going on?" Molly asked in her 'concerned mother' voice.

"Molly," Hermione addressed with a slight quiver of something akin to fear in her voice. "Ron and I broke up last night."

"Oh dear!" Molly exclaimed and pulled Hermione into a bone-crushing embrace. "I'm so sorry. That boy always did have a bad temper and the common sense to match. He clearly couldn't see what a wonderful young lady he had right in front of him."

"Actually, I broke up with him," Hermione blurted.

"Oh," Molly said, disappointment lacing her words, but the woman did not release her immediately. She hugged Hermione for another good moment before leading her to the kitchen table to talk. "What did he do this time?"

"He didn't like me working with Draco Malfoy. He doesn't trust me anymore, and now that I'm taking care of my cousin, he doesn't help or even talk to me," Hermione choked, fighting tears. She really did hate crying in front of others, but recently her hormones were on high. Her body wanted to cry all the time.

"Ronald has made many mistakes, but none as bad as not trusting you. Hopefully, he'll see that. Am I to presume the wedding is canceled?" Molly asked, stroking Hermione's back gently.

"Yes. I'm sorry, Molly. I know you planned so much—" Hermione started, but Molly cut her off with a soft but firm "Don't be sorry for me, dear. Now, let's get you some tea then, you'll tell me everything."

Molly bustled around the kitchen getting Hermione's favorite tea and some biscuits. When the Weasley matriarch served the tea, Hermione had finally been able to think through what she was willing to tell Molly, and set about telling the tale.

"So, I needed Malfoy's help breaking this pureblood law…"

 _ **This is a terribly awkward ending because the entire chapter is too long to upload and I had to cut it in half. It's now in two parts. Sorry.**_


	17. Rocky Endings (Part 2)

Draco was pacing. Hermione was late. Not that they had a set time, but the woman showed up at ten sharp every weekday, so he had come to have expectations. She was a full hour late and he was beginning to get worried.

"Damn her for messing up my routine. Who does she think she is leaving me without so much as a note? If this is because of Sunday…" he was muttering as Narcissa Malfoy strode into the library.

She stopped and looked around, confusion in her eyes behind her cold mask of indifference. "Where's the mudblood?"

"I don't know," Draco ground out, trying to ignore his mother's crude words. One would think that after almost losing her entire family to the Dark Lord and their Pureblood ideology she would at least tone down her supremacist ideals, but no. Even after a halfblood, a blood-traitor, and a mudblood defeated their 'all-powerful' Dark Lord, the woman could not accept that magical prowess was not dependent on heritage.

"Well, one cannot expect much in the way of manners from her stock," his mother said off handily.

Draco let out an exasperated sigh and silently hoped that Granger and his mother would never have any more social interactions. "What are you here for, mother?"

"Oh yes," Narcissa said as if she forgot. Sneaky witch. "Astoria told me you were discussing marriage and children with her, and I was wondering which ring would you like your father to get out of the vault. I am so glad you finally came to your senses. I almost thought you were going to leave poor Astoria at the wayside for a woman with inferior breeding."

 _I knew I would have to deal with this eventually,_ Draco thought bitterly. "Mother," he began carefully. He knew that she would not take the news well, and he dearly hoped he could come out of this with his inheritance intact. "I was discussing those things with Astoria to find out if we were compatible, and I have decided that we would not be well suited for each other."

"And when were you going to tell the poor girl that?" his mother admonished. "She wholeheartedly thinks you're about to propose. Why did you not tell her your little revelation last night?"

Draco had the decency to look ashamed even though he was far from it. "Daphne came in, and I thought it would only make it worse to break up with her in front of her sister."

His mother glared at him. She taught him how to treat women, and it seemed he had ignored a very vital lesson. "So, leading the girl to believe you were going to marry her, only to tell her the following day that you're breaking up, is making the situation better?" she bit out.

"I'm sorry, mother. I panicked and took the easy way out," he murmured. He knew his mother was right, even if he didn't feel as sorry as he looked about breaking Astoria's heart. _A man should always consider the woman's feelings in his dealings with ending or beginning relationships…_

"You will invite Astoria for dinner tonight, then afterwards, you will delicately explain the situation and give her the emerald necklace from your vault as a token of your stupidity. This girl has given you two years of her young life and does not deserve for it to be wasted!" Narcissa ranted. It was very unlike her to get so emotional about such dealings, so Draco filed the interaction away as something he should ask his father about.

At this point, Draco was actually feeling rather guilty about leading Astoria on. He knew that she was a good woman despite how self-centered she could be. As soon as his mother left in a huff, he began planning his break up speech. It would have to be delicate, yet firm. He didn't want to leave any hope. A feeling of dread sunk into Draco's stomach; either this was a massive mistake, or he was just terrified of Astoria's reaction.

"Merlin, I hope this goes well," he prayed as he wrote out his thoughts.

"What has you late for work?" Joseph asked upon seeing Hermione enter the office space. "You never said."

"I had a talk with Molly Weasley this morning," she explained while she frantically shuffled paperwork around her desk. "Do you know where my notes from Thursday are?" She asked, giving up her search with a huff. "I thought of something and need those notes to confirm what I'm thinking."

Joseph smiled, glad to be useful. He hadn't much to do since Hermione began her research at Malfoy Manor and it had gotten boring without the brunette giving him daily tasks. "I put them in a neat filing system in that cabinet," he explained with pride. "They're sorted by day and put in order. I then created a document that lists when and where you used the key words you highlighted."

"You're amazing!" She exclaimed and brought him into a quick hug. "This I brilliant!" She said as she examined his document. It obviously took a lot of work from the complicated magic that must have gone into it. "I'll have to speak to Kingsley about having you promoted. You're an amazing assistant, but you'd be even better as apart of the team," she said and smiled up at him.

Joesph was stunned. The document he made was a time filler because he was bored, and Hermione Granger thought it was brilliant enough to deserve to work with her. The thought intimidated him. Work with _Hermione Granger?_ How could he live up to her standards? Could he work at her level? He could tell by organizing her notes that she was meticulous and everyone she worked with was also. Was Joseph detailed enough? Smart enough? Quick enough? He ended up stuttering out, "I think I'd rather be your assistant."

Hermione looked crestfallen, but her smile came back, albeit without the same brilliance as before when she stated, "the least I can do is get you a raise for all this help. Thank you Joseph, and before you say no, it's the _least_ I can do."

Joseph was blushing furiously. He was not used to such praise and was not sure how to take it. He had only been working with Hermione for two months, with half of it barely seeing her since she was at Malfoy Manor, and he had yet to get used to her kindness. His last boss was a harsh man and this was his first job, so he assumed that was just the way of the workplace. He was in for a massive shock when Hermione became his new boss, and he never fully got over it. Thankfully, before he could make a total fool of himself by showing his lack of ability to handle positivity, she broke the brief silence with her plans.

Hermione had been sorting through her notes in his silence and found the page she was looking for. "Here it is!" she yammered excitedly. "I knew it was there all along! Joesph, do you know what this means?" She pulled his attention back. Upon giving her a confused look, she continued, "the 'tags' were even more than I thought they were. Not only did each law have one specific family cast a spell over it that must be undone, but each group of laws passed together has a item attached to the binding that must be destroyed before it can be broken. It's a very secure way to pass laws, but terribly difficult to break."

"Does this mean you're going to be out of the office longer?" Joseph asked, slightly afraid his boss might not come back.

"Sadly," she frowned in a contemplative manner. After a few seconds of chewing on her lip thinking, she turned back to Joseph and asked, "would you like to come along? I could use someone to help find this object. We will have to do some more research first to get an idea of what it could be."

He could hardly formulate words. He always imagined what it would have been like to be a part of the Golden Trio when they were in the woods for a year, and now it seems he would have a chance, but something held him back. "Would Malfoy be joining us?"

"That's a good question," Hermione said, considering the notion. "I would have to ask. He is now a part of the team and has a right to go. This will all have to be discussed with the Minister first, then I'll talk to Malfoy. I presume you'll have your answer after that?"

"Yes," Joseph nodded. Shortly after, he looked somewhere between worried and frightened. "Since he's a part of the team, does that mean he's my boss too?"

Hermione let out a loud laugh. _So, that's what he was worried about. Is he really that scared of Draco Malfoy?_ she thought. The very notion that someone would be scared of an over-glorified school yard bully like Draco Malfoy made Hermione want to dissolve into a puddle of giggles. When she regained her composure, she replied, "No. He is not your boss. I am his boss in a way. He is more like a contract worker. He is an expert in Pureblood ceremony and his blood is very useful, but once we can break the laws without his assistance, he will leave the team."

Joseph let out a small breath of relief. The thought of Draco Malfoy being able to order him around scared him witless. But, knowing that he would still be working this an Ex-Death Eater was no comfort.

Hermione did not seem concerned about his musings and continued on as normal. "I'm going to update the Minister on our progress. Can you please make copies of these notes, then create a report on the significance of our revelation? Kingsley will want it after our talk." Hermione walked out of the office towards Kingsley's office and left Joseph to stare after her in awe before scrambling to start the report she wanted.

"I don't know where the item is, but Malfoy and I will begin researching that today. We will need to find out which family bound the item and that will likely give us a clue as to what the item may be," Hermione explained. She had spent the last hour and a half in Kingsley's office briefing him on her new findings. They were so close. She could feel it.

"Once we have enough information on the bound item, I want you and Mr. Malfoy to go out and try to find it while rounding up as many people with Sacred 28 blood as you can. At that point, word will probably get out about the law being broken, and we will need to put Rosalinda in secure hiding and have an auror escort you both through your travels." Hermione was about to protest that she could take care of herself, but Kingsley stopped her with one finger. "I know you can handle yourself, Hermione. But, you carry a lot of confidential information, and I would like that information as secure as possible. Clear?"

"Yes," Hermione conceded reluctantly. "Oh, any word from Rosalinda's mother?" she asked as an afterthought.

Kingsley let out a sigh and rubbed his face. "No, he replied heavily. "I'm shocked she hasn't reclaimed her child. I have started to think that maybe she doesn't want Rose anymore. I know it's putting a burden on you, but hopefully this will end soon, and perhaps Mr. Malfoy will raise his daughter."

Hermione smiled genially. "I love having Rosie. She's the sweetest little girl, and I am happy I get to help take care of her. But I have the feeling when this is all wrapped up, Malfoy will jump at the chance to raise her."

Kingsley raised a brow, but commented no further. He merely dismissed her to finish the dwindling work day and bid her a good week.

Hermione looked at her watch for the first time in hours. _Oh Merlin! I'm so late to Malfoy's!_ she thought and rushed back into her office.

"Joseph!" she called as soon as she reached the threshold.

His messy head of brown locks popped up from behind his desk. "Yes?"

"I'm super late to go to the Manor. If you can't submit that report by the end of the day, tomorrow will be fine. I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow!" she said. With a quick wave, she rushed to the floor, hoping someone would let her into the Manor. Usually a house elf would be there to let her in, but since she was late, she wasn't so sure.

"There is a visitor for Master," Dinky squeaked.

"I'll be there in a moment," Draco replied distractedly. He was so busy planning out his break up he almost forget to ask who was coming. "Oh," he added just as the elf was about to pop away. "Who was it?"

"Mistress Granger," the elf said with a lopsided smile.

"She is not your mistress, Dinky. She is merely a guest," Draco corrected.

"Yes, Master," Dinky said with a conspiring smirk. The elf knew something Draco didn't, and that greatly disturbed him. Before he could question the little elf, Dinky disappeared with a crack. _When did the house elves start colluding about my love life?_ he thought.

Draco put down his notes and strode out of the library to meet Granger. _Three hours late! Does she expect me to have nothing else to do with my day other than wait for her arse to waltz into the library? What does she even have to do that would cause her to be late? It's not like she has the most exciting life,_ Draco grumbled internally as he descended the stairs. He was still peeved when he swung open the front doors to see Granger looking rather pale nodding to an excited Astoria.

 _What on earth is Astoria doing here early? More importantly, why is she even talking to Her-Granger?_ "Hello ladies," he welcomed stiffly. He was in a situation he did not know how to handle, so he fell back on looking indifferent while he mentally freaked.

"Hello," Astoria grinned at Draco, then turned to Hermione, "We'll talk later." She winked and strode into the Manor, presumably to find his mother and chat about girly things.

Still looking rather pale, Hermione merely nodded at Draco and walked passed him toward the library. The behavior was very unlike Granger and that did not sit well with Draco. He knew that their 'date' did not end terribly well, but he didn't expect her to be so withdrawn. Or with Astoria for that matter. After his pause for thought, Draco shut the doors rather noisily and followed after Hermione, intent on getting answers.

Hermione was walking up to the front steps of Malfoy Manor when she heard 'Hermione!' from behind her. She automatically whipped her wand out and searched the area. When her eyes landed on a very frighted Astoria Greengrass, she let out a relieved breath and put her wand away. "You frighted me," she said, greeting the younger woman.

"I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking. I was just so happy to see you. I wanted to thank you," Astoria gushed.

"For what?" Hermione asked. What has she ever done for the youngest Greengrass?

"For getting Draco to propose, silly!" the woman squealed. "He came over last night to talk about marriage and kids, and I just know he's going to ask. He looked like he was about to before my sister walked in!"

Hermione was stunned. She thought Draco would break up with the girl. He didn't seem to like her that much. He did floo in and tell Harry he screwed up. Did that mean he regretted the date? Not that is was a real date or anything-.

"He went into how many kids I wanted, how I would raise them, and even what I would do if he already had a kid. Not that that's possible—" Astoria chattered on, but Hermione's thoughts stopped.

 _He asked her how she would handle Rose. How could he put her in danger like that? Maybe he is serious about this. It's not as if marrying me could get him—._ Her train of thought was cut off by the door opening. She saw Malfoy look at her questionably before putting on his 'I don't know how to deal with this' mask. She didn't even say hello to him or apologize for being late as she normally would; all Hermione could think about was Malfoy was getting married, and she wasn't. She was alone, taking care of Malfoy's child, and once he married Astoria, the little girl would be ripped away from her. The thought broke Hermione's heart with every step she took up the stairs toward the library. _I'm going to lose her._

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. I am sorry this was super late (and awkwardly in two parts). I have been moving and life is a complete mess right now. I promise things will go back to normal mid-July. I'll try to update every week, but if it doesn't happen, it's because I'm attempting to not go crazy and bury myself in boxes. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review with comments or concerns; I love hearing from all of you._**

 ** _P.S. What do you all think about Ilvermorny? I'm a Slytherin-Thunderbird and I'm not sure how I feel about this new house stuff./_**


	18. Laura Beatriz Morandi

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Hermione had been strangely quiet and distracted for the past hour. She had hardly uttered three words to him since entering the Manor. Those three words were a weak 'sorry I'm late'. Usually, she would be rambling on about the law or Rose by now, but instead she was curled up in her chair trying to read a volume on law. He could tell she wasn't really reading because she hadn't flipped more than one page since the beginning of the hour. He had given up trying to figure out her strange mood and took the peace as a time to finish his thoughts on his upcoming breakup. He still didn't understand why Astoria was talking to Granger. The last time he saw them interact, Astoria was trying to fault their relationship in a show some kind of dominance. _When did they get friendly?_ He remembered Hermione's pale complexion and amended his previous thought. _When did Astoria get so friendly?_

He looked over to see Hermione rub her forehead in exasperation. As she did this, he could see a hint of sadness behind her eyes. _Why is she sad?_ he thought. He thought she was giving him the cold shoulder because of their date, which would be understandable, but it seemed to be more than that, which left Draco very confused.

Unwilling to let one of his few surviving relationships crumble, he got up and sat next to Hermione. She glance up at him for a second before continuing to scan the page. He sat in silence trying to come up with his words. _Hermione, I know I was an arsehole on our date— no. Maybe: I'm sorry I screwed up our evening— no. I'm not going to marry Astoria and you were right— no. Ugh. Why is this so difficult?_

"Why are you sad?" he ended up blurting out. The second the words left his mouth he knew he sounded like an ass. _Mother lectures me on how to treat women my whole life, then Granger comes along and screws it all up._

She turned towards him, apprehension lacing her features, soon to be replaced with anger. "Why do you think?" she said gritting her teeth.

"I'm sorry I was such an arse last night," he began, but she cut him off.

"Why would you even ask me to tell you that you're right in not marrying Astoria if you were going to go right ahead and marry her?" she shouted, her knuckles turning white and her fingernails biting into the book she was holding.

 _This is an odd plot twist_ Draco thought. _Where did she get the strange idea I'm going to marry—._ His train of thought ended abruptly as realization dawned on him. _That's what Hermione and Astoria were talking about!_ He laughed merrily at his next thought which only served to aggravate Hermione further. _Hermione is jealous._ Before he got hexed by the angry witch, he cleared the water. "I'm not going to marry Astoria. I just talked to her last night to make sure I was going to make the right decision. I'm planning on breaking up with her tonight."

Emotions played across Hermione's face like a flip book of pictures. Angry. Shocked. Embarrassed. Happy? Suspicious. Then, angry again. "Then, why does she think you're going to pop the question tonight?" she growled.

It was Draco's turn to look embarrassed. "Daphne came in before I could end it, and I ran out," he said sheepishly.

Hermione raised an eyebrow as if to question that he would actually run anywhere, then she must have concluded he was serious with a snort of laughter. "Wow, I wouldn't want to be you tonight," she smirked.

Draco was tempted to take the bait and continue with more light hearted conversation, but he knew that it would come back to bite him with Hermione. The woman remembered everything. "I really am sorry for being an arse to you last night. As much fun as it is to rile you up, I didn't mean to make you angry. I was just trying to feel a little bit better about being happy while I wasn't trying to get my daughter back."

Hermione's face softened. She looked at him with the gentlest doe eyes, then reached down to stroke the side of his face with more tenderness than Draco ever knew. He found himself closing his eyes and leaning into her divine touch against his will. "You are not a bad man, Draco," she whispered.

He remembered their shouting match last night and smiled when he realized that she finally answered him. When he opened his eyes, she was still staring at him with care, and then it struck him like a sack full of galleons: he wanted to kiss her. Her lips looked enticing, and he could swear they were just whispering for him to taste them. Not that he would because it was horribly inappropriate timing, but he would store that new feeling away for later thought. However, before he could tuck the feeling away fully, he thought he noticed a spark of desire light up her eyes. Being the considerate man that he was, he teased, "why Granger, you almost sound like you like me." He added a dramatic wink for flair.

That's all it took for Draco and Hermione to go back to their normal dynamic. They both locked away their new-found attraction and settled for their usual witty banter. After a few minutes of poking fun at each other, Hermione told Draco about her new discovery.

"So basically, we have to find some object- that could be anywhere- and destroy it, to then have the chance to break the curses binding the law?" he asked. She nodded. "Well that's absolutely ridiculous!" he ranted. "How do we even find the object? It could be anything! I swear they only wrote up these ridiculous laws to laugh at the poor souls tasked to break them."

Hermione laughed humorlessly. "That _was_ the purpose. They tried to make them as unbreakable as possible," she said solemnly, then sighed. "But we have to figure this out. Which family sealed the law?"

"Can we cast an identifying spell on the actual law?"

"I don't think that would be a bright idea," Hermione warned.

"Why not? An identifying spell is harmless."

"Well, there are a lot of defenses around the law, and we have to figure out how to break them down first before we can cast on it. However, the first defense is tied to the object, so it's basically impossible."

Draco groaned. This law was taking forever. "Okay, let's go back and look at those old journals. Can you ask Potter, Longbottom, Weasley, and the Minister to try and find journals from the time also? I will ask the Slytherins."

"Okay." There was a brief moment of silence. "Draco?" Hermione asked wearily. He gave her a questioning look, but nodded for her to continue. "Should we start hiding away Rosie? As soon as your father gets word of this law he will not be happy."

Draco rubbed his face, showing his years of worry. "I don't think so. Not yet at least. I will tell all of the Slytherins that these journals for some of my personal research. They know I occasionally dabble in alchemy. I'll make sure it's believable."

"You research alchemy?" Hermione perked up.

"It's just a side project," he dismissed.

"To what? Sitting on your arse and becoming more rich?"

"I can't tell you."

"You make me even more intrigued." She smirked.

"You work for the Ministry."

"You do too."

"Ugh. Fine you unbearably annoying woman," he grumbled. "I collect artifacts of rather dark nature."

"Is that not the hobby of everyone in your family?" Hermione asked, one eyebrow quirked up.

"Haha," he droned. "No, I just like how usually Dark magic comes from good intentions and sometimes can be used for good."

The passion in his voice made Hermione grin involuntarily. "How did something like secumsepra comes from good intentions?" she teased

"Curiosity. If curiosity was evil, you would be darker than the Dark Lord."

"Good point. That's very interesting. I would like to have you tell me more sometime in the future."

"You're not going to lecture me on collecting quite illegal things?" Draco asked incredulously.

"Do you keep the artifacts out of the reach of those who could potentially harm themselves or others with them?"

"Of course!" he began heatedly.

"Then, I see no problem," she said simply.

Draco was amazed that Hermione was so relaxed about the information he just gave her, but with a bit more thought he understood. After all, who would be surprised by Ex-Deatheater Draco Malfoy collecting dark artifacts after he told her that he had a child at sixteen. The latter was much less believable, yet she was taking care of his daughter.

"Alright," Hermione groaned getting out of her cushy chair. "We can't do anything without those journals, so let's take the rest of the day off to collect them. I'll owl you if I don't have them by the end of the day, and we will continue tomorrow."

"Granger," Draco drawled. "I do have rather important plans tonight. How about I see you Wednesday unless someone is dying."

"Oh," she said, remembering his 'plans'. A devious smirk spread across her face. "I guess I wouldn't be seeing you on Wednesday. Unless that's when the funeral is."

Draco grimaced. "Don't remind me. If I don't make it tell the aurors it was all my fault." At that moment a thought flitted across Draco's brain. _What if I did die? Who would have Rosalinda?_ The prospect that no one would be able to take care of his daughter scared Draco. _Hermione. She would take care of her. Would she?_ "Granger," he choked out.

She turned around, confused at his tone. One second he was joking around and the next he looked like he was overcome by the spirit of Voldemort. "Yes?" she inquired carefully.

"If I really did die, would you take care of Rosalinda?"

"Are you asking me to be her godmother?" Hermione gasped faintly.

"Yes." _Merlin, what has gotten into me?_ He thought. _Asking Hermione Granger to be my daughter's godmother. Next, I'll be skipping through a field of flowers with the other bleeding-heart Gryffind—_

She broke into a brilliant grin for a moment, then schooled her features into an almost-Slytherin smirk. "You do know that this grants me forever visiting rights?" He groaned, but she continued on with an evil glint in her eye. "I'll get to tell her all about how her father was basically glued to pug-nosed-Parkinson in school. Maybe even show her the secret passages around Hogwarts. And when she's sorted into Gryffindor I'll—"

"No," Draco commanded. "My daughter will not be a bloody Gryffindor. She'll be a Slytherin. A Ravenclaw at the least."

Draco's valiant attempt at stopping Hermione's ramblings were for naught as she continued as if he didn't even speak. "I'll show her the squashiest chairs in the tower. I'll make sure she treats the house elves right. Oh, and when she has her first boyfriend—"

"No boys!" Draco cried. "My daughter will not be dating any boys!"

Hermione merely snorted in acknowledgment and finished. "I will help her pick out the perfect Yule dress to blow him away. But, long story short, I accept," she added the last bit with true glee. "I don't want to say I hope Astoria kills you, but I will be happy to keep your daughter if any curses land you six feet under tonight."

All Draco could do was lay his head into the chair and grumble about what a horrible decision he just made all while Hermione was striding out of the door cackling with delight. However, as much as Draco was dreading his daughter being turned into a Gryffindor, he knew she was in good hands, and in the long run he made the right decision. That didn't mean that he was happy about it though.

Hermione Granger was stalling. She was running around Diagon Alley doing nonessential errands she had put off in the last few weeks just to stay away from the apartment, Ron was presumably leaving, as long as possible. She knew it wasn't very Gryffindor of her to avoid confrontation and take the easy way out, but she was blaming Draco for rubbing off on her and trying her hardest to ignore how lame her excuse was. As she was coming out of Flourish and Blotts with a new bottle of green ink, she heard a voice come from her left.

"Excuse me ma'am. Can I have a word?"

Hermione turned around and saw a very familiar woman. She was petite with sun-kissed skin, dirty blonde hair, and stunning sapphire eyes. Upon closer study, she realized it was the same woman from the alley last night. The woman's kind words came back to her, and she replied, "sure. Tea?"

The other woman nodded, and Hermione lead them to a quaint tea shop next to Twilfitt and Tatting's. They sat down at a table near the corner against the front window. Hermione usually would have really enjoyed getting her favorite spot if it wasn't for the woman's penetrating stares. She had a feeling that this talk wasn't going to be rainbows and sunshine.

"Where is my daughter?" the woman asked bluntly. Her glare penetrating, however it was clear that the woman was not angry but merely worried for her daughter.

"Who are you?" Hermione retaliated.

"Laura Morandi. Now, where is my daughter. I have seen you with her," Laura demanded, her steely gaze never wavering from Hermione.

"You are Rosalinda's mother?" Hermione asked softly.

"Yes. Now don't make me ask again. Where is my daughter?" the woman attempted to spit menacingly, but ended up sounding pathetic.

Hermione's heart melted for the woman, but she knew that revealing Rosalinda's location could be very dangerous if Laura was not her real mother. "First, you need to prove to me that you are indeed her mother and you will not harm her. I am not letting anything happen to Rose as long as I have anything to do with it," Hermione stated. Her resolve was impenetrable, and the woman knew that she would not move the war hero.

The woman sighed. "Her father is Draco Malfoy. He got me pregnant when he was sixteen. He also demanded that I name my baby Vela Rosalind. I still don't understand why I bent to his ridiculous demands after what he did. Probably because he seemed to genuinely want to look after my baby."

Hermione could not think of a single person who could possibly know that much information about Malfoy, so she decided that this distraught woman must be Rosalinda's mum. "She is in primary school right now, currently glamoured to look like my younger cousin."

Laura sagged with relief. "I'm glad to know she is safe. She disappeared, and when I saw her with you, I thought you might look too far into her life. You obviously have, which makes me wonder how you found out so much about my story," she asked speculatively.

"I work with Draco," Hermione stated. "I found your daughter in Diagon Alley with no parents, and I called the aurors. That day I was able to speak to Malfoy, and he admitted she was his daughter. The Minister and myself have since taken the necessary precautions to protect Rose from Lucius. Including changing her identity." After she finished her miniature report, Hermione finally asked the burning question she had for a while. "Why didn't you come and get her before?"

Laura looked at Hermione as if she was incompetent which greatly offended the brains of the Golden Trio. "If I went to the Ministry to pick her up, I would have been put in the British system—" Hermione thought the woman's accent sounded a bit off, and she recognized it now as a light Italian accent. She was surprised she didn't notice it before. "and that slim ball, Lucius Malfoy, is all too integrated into your little government. As soon as he saw that there was a woman picking up a little girl with obvious Malfoy blood, my daughter would have been good as dead."

"Your daughter is safe, and despite your worries," Hermione began with an air of condescension. She did not like it when people did not see her intelligence "if you had come the first night she was gone, they would not have filed a report given the special circumstances. However, now I cannot release her to you until the Minister deems it safe. If all of a sudden my charge disappears without the proper backstory, the Prophet will have a reporter to investigate, and that could only end badly."

"I _need_ my daughter," Laura whispered venomously.

Hermione stared the other woman down, feeling very defensive. "Your daughter is my charge right now, and I will not let you put her into any danger."

Laura glared at Hermione. "When will she not be in danger? Your Ministry has a trunk full of ridiculous Pureblood laws that will put her in danger every second they're still there."

"I would rather you not insult my intelligence," Hermione ground out. "As I am in charge of breaking those laws."

The woman had the courtesy to look mildly embarrassed, but she recovered a moment later. "I demand to see my daughter."

Hermione took a calming breath. _This woman is just worried about her child. You should be more sympathetic_ she thought to herself. However, she was not going to risk the life of a six year old on a mother's worries. "I'm sorry," she said sincerely, but with resolve, "but it is my responsibility to protect your daughter, and having anyone connect the two of you too soon could put her in more danger than I will risk."

"She is _my_ daughter," Laura seethed.

"I hoped that you could see past that and understand the bigger picture," Hermione sighed, suddenly very tired. She stood up, pulling out two galleons for the bill and set them on the table before continuing, "However, she is in my care now, and I will not stand for you putting her in danger. I will find you when she is no longer at risk." Hermione walked out of the restaurant leaving Rose's mother on the verge of tears. It broke Hermione's heart that she had to stand between a mother and her child, but knowing that her goddaughter was safe kept her from breaking down until she got to Andromeda's.

Narcissa Malfoy was striding down the cobblestone street in Diagon Alley. She was set to host a soon-to-be rather depressing supper, and she needed a new outfit for the occasion. She was a nearly to Twilfitt and Tatting's, her go-to boutique, when she saw something peculiar: Hermione Granger was arguing with another young woman in the neighboring tea parlor, and she was getting up to leave. The woman she was arguing with seemed to be on the verge of bawling, her golden hair covering her face, but when she swept her hair back, Narcissa saw her dazzling blue eyes rimmed red with unshed tears.

Narcissa kept an undetectable distance away from the scene that no one else seemed to notice and memorized the other woman's face. Hermione Granger was feisty, but never one to be cruel. So, whatever made the Golden Girl leave another obviously distressed piqued the interest of Narcissa. She wondered if this woman had anything to do with Miss Granger's tardiness this morning. However, not one to waste precious shopping time, Narcissa continued to the dress shop, filing her observations away for her nightly chat with her husband. She had a feeling life was about to get infinitely more interesting.

"Goodnight, Rose," Hermione whispered, tucking the little girl into her bed. Rosie was sleeping like an angel: her lips pouted, hair wild and glowing white in the darkness, and her soft sighs like wind chimes in the breeze. Hermione stared at her sleeping form for another minute before easing out of Rosalinda's room. Shutting the door quietly, Hermione glanced around her barren apartment. _I never noticed how much of this was Ron's_ she mused to herself.

Ron fully moved out that day, as requested, and Hermione felt nearly empty. He was such a big part of her life for so long, she didn't know what to do with herself. At the moment all she wanted to do was curl up and watch a muggle film with Ron and tell him all about Laura, but that was no longer an option. Rosalinda was her only constant. Maybe that was why Hermione felt so hostile towards Laura. The woman's appearance shook Hermione. Not only did she realize that her time with Rosie was temporary, no matter her jokes with Draco, but also that Rosie was not her's. She belonged to another woman no matter how much Hermione adored her, and that broke her heart because at the moment, Hermione would give anything to be Rosie's mom.

Yawning either from sleepiness or emotional exhaustion, Hermione settled back to her room. _At least I still have my bed_ she thought before drifting into a fitful slumber.

"I don't think we will be good for each other."

Astoria burst into a fountain of tears.

 ** _/Thank you all for reading. As usual, review with comments and critiques. I love hearing them all. Also, if any of you are going to Geekycon this weekend I would love to meet you. Have a fabulous week!./_**


	19. The Kiss

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

Draco had been pacing in front of his personal floo for half an hour debating whether or not he should visit Hermione. He had already sent her an owl explaining that he survived Astoria, and they could continue work today, but breaking off his relationship with Astoria had not gone as he thought it would, and since they ended last night, all he wanted to do was tell Hermione.

After another five minutes of pacing, he quickly threw the floo powder in and shouted her address before he could back out again.

He walked straight through to her living room surprised she had left the floo open. He was about to call out for her when he heard her. Her voice was still rough from sleep, and she was coaxing Rose from bed. "Rosie. It's time to get up for school." She walked out of the open door with his daughter half asleep over her arm, neither one noticing him.

Seeing the pouting dopey little girl, her platinum hair in disarray, clutching Hermione while mumbling something about waffles made Draco's heart swell. That was his daughter. She was perfect and beautiful, and he wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and never let her go. He was in love. The few seconds he saw her before Hermione rounded the corner to the kitchen was enough for him to know that the little girl in front of him was his everything, and he would do anything for her.

He almost followed, never wanting to lose sight of his little girl again, but he knew that he was unannounced and not suppose to see her. He was still listening to their morning routine as he tip-toed back to the floo. Rosalinda was whining about wanting raspberries on her waffles, Hermione's tinkling laugh ran through the small, empty apartment, and the soft banging of cabinets could be heard as Hermione started breakfast. This was everything Draco ever wanted, and it took all of his self control to throw the floo powder in and travel back to the Manor. Upon arriving in his personal sitting room, he fell into his sofa and let out a strangled sob.

(~)

Hermione thought she heard footsteps, but upon a silent, wandless _Homenum Revelio,_ she saw nothing and continued on with their breakfast.

Rosalinda was particularly cute that morning. Usually an early riser, she was dozing on and off while at the table, her requests for various toppings on her morning waffles muffled by her folded arms. Hermione took a minute to just watch the little girl. She never wanted to forget these moments as she was not sure how long they would last. With a sigh, she continued on with making waffles which slowly brought Rose into wakefulness. By the end of their meal, Rose was excitedly babbling on about what she was going to do at school. Apparently, she had the most occurrences of accidental magic, so she received extra attention after she turned another child into a blueberry. Hermione couldn't contain her laughter, imagining a toddler puffing up into a blueberry, and Rose beamed up at her, proud she could make her guardian laugh.

"Ready for school?" Hermione asked, grabbing Rose's bag of parchment and coloring quills.

"Yup," she replied animatedly and took a hold of Hermione's hand, ready for apparition.

They spun away to Little Wings, both witches excited for the day ahead.

(forward)

"This complicates things," Kingsley groaned, rubbing his hand over his face in agitation. _Of course the little girl's mother doesn't show up until we can see a clear end to the case. Then, she insists on sticking her nose in a confidential case, and can't get it through her head that her bloody insistent interference could kill her daughter,_ he mused _._ He let out a calming breath before returning his attention to Hermione in front of him. There was no need to be irritated with her as she had not done anything wrong.

"I propose that we bring her into custody. That way she cannot endanger Rosalinda or herself," Hermione said purposefully, interrupting his train of thought.

Kingsley let the thought sink in for a moment. He contemplated the consequences of bringing the woman in. _Can we legally hold her? She is impeding a confidential case, but she is the girl's mother. Does she have the right to endanger her daughter?_ Kingsley thought. He cleared his throat and replied, "I will contact my law advisor to make sure we can legally hold Ms. Morandi. If we can, I will send aurors to bring her in, but I want you to continue as if we cannot. Keep holding firm. Love can blind us, and she needs to know that her love for her daughter needs to include letting her daughter rest in capable hands until she is fully out of danger."

Hermione nodded solemnly and was about to get up and say her goodbyes when Kingsley stopped her with a hand. She settled back down, and he continued, "There are a few more matters we need to discuss. First, I have received your request to increase Joseph's pay. I have accepted, and the request is now being sent through payroll to make sure we have the budget to support his raise."

"Thank you so much," Hermione beamed, gratitude washing off her. She was an incredibly giving person, and it pleased the Minister to see her so joyous at being able to properly reward her employee for hard work.

"Yes, well I hope he gets it," Kingsley smiled back at his favorite employee, not that he would tell anyone that, and carried on with his speech. "Second, I want a scheduled meeting with you every Monday until Mr. Malfoy and yourself must go searching for the binding object. Once you both begin your journey, I want an owl twice a week with updates. All of the proper precautions put on the correspondence. Because, from now on you control when you come into the office, aside from the meetings. Your job is increasingly becoming out of the office, and knowing your work ethic, you're not screwing around on hours. So, when you find it fit to come in you can, but you do not need to until this case is solved. My only request is that you meet with me before you try to find the object."

Hermione's eyes were tearing up. She was so happy that she finally had a boss that trusted her to this extent. Yet, he still cared enough about her to ask to hear from her regularly as to make sure she was safe despite his busy schedule. Though it was awfully unprofessional, she got up and gave Kingsley a back-breaking hug. She couldn't seem to thank him enough for the kindness he had shown her in their short time working together. She let go after her gave an awkward cough, and she would have been embarrassed had he not been trying to hide a smile himself.

"So," she began. "Today will be more research. Unless I have anything pertinent or we decide to begin our search for the binding object, I will see you Monday."

"That sounds about right," he nodded, getting up with a groan from his chair. It had been a rather long talk and his back was doing him no good. "I'll see you Monday, and if we are able to bring in Ms. Morandi I will owl you."

"Have a great day, Kingsley."

"You too, Hermione," he said with a grin. As soon as she shut the office door, however, his face fell. _Now onto a day filled with incompetent employees._

(forward)

Draco was anxious to say the least. For the past two hours he was alternating between roughly running his fingers through his hair and patrolling the room where Hermione would usually floo in. He couldn't keep his mind off his daughter, and he wanted to know everything about her. Hermione was the person that could do that for him, and she seemed to be taking her sweet time in his book. Every so often, the memory of Hermione carrying Rosalinda would pop into his head and instead of mentally gushing over his daughter, his stomach would erupt into butterflies thinking about the very same woman actually being his daughter's mother, and how much joy that would bring him if it were true.

At this point, Draco could not deny that he had more than a little crush on Hermione Granger. One does not simply imagine a woman as the mother of their child, and have no desire whatsoever to snog her senseless. On that same thought, Hermione was recently out of a relationship, and he had some semblance of decency in him not to believe that she would immediately want to be with him and help him raise a daughter. But, the thought still brought him hope that at the end of all of this he might have a family, even if it was just him sharing his daughter with a mother he had only shared two interactions with.

Draco was in the middle of trying to guess Rosalinda's favorite food when Hermione stumbled through the floo. She did not notice his presence and continued scourgifying her robes. When she looked up, she finally saw him and almost jumped out of her skin while letting out a muffled scream.

"Draco!" she screeched, bewildered. "What the hell are you doing?"

Suddenly realizing just how pathetic he looked just waiting for her to arrive, he quickly made up an excuse. "I was just hiding from mother. She's not too happy with me currently."

Her expression softened, and she sat down next to him and asked jokingly, "what did you do now?"

He gave her a slight smirk and remembered what he was going to tell her about earlier when he walked into her apartment before he saw his daughter. "Well, she isn't all too happy I broke up with Astoria. I can't blame her. I didn't exactly let her down easily."

"You are kind of an arsehole," she winked cheekily.

He chuckled and continued on with his story. "Once mother found out that I was intending to break up with Astoria, but Astoria believed I was going to propose, mother made me invite her over for dinner. The dinner was horribly awkward. Somehow my mother thought that a breakup dinner should be lively and forced conversation which did not bode well. Afterward, she basically locked me in the drawing room with Astoria and made me give her an emerald necklace, which, upon giving it to Astoria made her think that we were engaged. That didn't make the 'I'm sorry I don't think we're right for each other' speech all the more terrible. She bawled her eyes out, then got raging mad, throwing a precious vase at me in the process. Overall, the night wasn't the greatest, and if I end of dead by poison, it's Astoria."

Hermione was obviously trying to conceal her giggles, but couldn't hold them in any longer once he finished his story. "Wow, Draco. You made my breakup with Ron look borderline friendly."

"At least I didn't end up in the hospital," he quipped.

"Touché."

They were both left grinning in the peaceful silence of a finished conversation, neither one wanted to speak, because they both knew that the next step was more grueling research.

Hermione finally broke the silence after a minute. "Library?"

Draco sighed, popped his back, and dramatically rolled off of the sofa that he was sitting on, fell onto the floor, then clawed his way back up to standing. His performance earned him a giggle from Hermione, and together they trudged up to the library.

By the time Hermione and Draco had made it to the library and into their respective chairs, the light-hearted exchange from earlier wore off. They eased into their normal routine, picking up the Malfoy journals, they continued where they left off and remained in studious silence for the next hour; only the soft flipping of pages and quill scratching on parchment interrupted the silence.

(forward)

Hermione was so focused, she didn't even notice Draco saying her name over and over until he shouted 'Hermione!' She flew out of her chair, knocking her quill and journal to the floor and whipped her wand out, surveying the room for danger. When her eyes landed on his body, quaking with laughter, she stuffed her wand back in its holster and sat down grumbling, "idiotic, self-centered brat" while her cheeks flamed with embarrassment.

Calming his breath, furthered by Hermione's death-glare, Draco sat upwards and told her his discovery with a cracked smile. "I found the day the laws were sealed. The third of May. So, now we need to owl other members and have them find journals that mention this date," he explained.

"That's fantastic!" she exclaimed. Her anger and humiliation had disappeared, and she started planning aloud. "Okay, I need several sheets of parchment. You write to the Slytherins, and I'll cover the rest. We will make it seem like it is for your pursuit of alchemy to the Slytherins, and I will tell the others that it is for personal research; they wouldn't question that. But, we must let them know that it's important. I don't want them taking their sweet time bringing us the journals…" Her voice faded away as she chewed on her lip in deep thought.

All the while, Draco was collecting supplies needed for their many letters. He unearthed his Malfoy family seal and specialty green wax from his desk drawer, fished out Hermione's simple 'HG' seal and purple wax from her bag, and set out several sheets of fine parchment on his expansive work desk. She was still pacing in thought once he was finished. "How much thought does a couple of letters take?" he thought in exasperation.

After waiting patiently for a solid minute for Granger to stop overthinking, he could not stand her fretfulness, so he got up and pulled her over to the desk by her shoulders. She squawked, but he continued to drag her until she plopped down roughly in the chair he previously occupied. "What was that for?" she asked indignantly.

He looked at her incredulously. "Because I was afraid for your health," he drawled sarcastically, sitting at the other chair he pulled over.

She glowered at him and snapped, "No need for sass."

"When you pace for five solid minutes about a couple of letters, there is a need for much more than 'sass'," he sneered. "Now write."

Hermione surprisingly followed his command and began scribbling her note to Neville. She was nearly finished with her first letter when she turned to see Draco still staring at her in disbelief. "What now?" she asked letting out a long sigh.

"You listened to me," he said, stunned.

"Oh, get over yourself," she smirked and flicked her hair behind her shoulder.

"Now who's being sassy," Draco quipped, a smile growing on his face.

She merely ignored him, and after a moment, he followed suit and began writing his own letters. Within, thirty minutes they were finished, but leaning back in their chairs chatting.

"So, what's Rosalinda's favorite food?" Draco asked casually.

Hermione thought briefly before replying with a smile. "Definitely blueberries. So much so that she actually had a bout of accidental magic at school and turned another child into a big blueberry." She giggled just thinking about Rosalinda's story. "She likes the additional attention she gets because she is the one that has the most magic accidents."

Draco was bent over laughing hard enough to get a stitch in his side. The thought of his daughter laughing wickedly as another child turned into a big, bright blueberry was enough to send him into hysterics. He was incredibly proud of his powerful little witch. When he finally regained control, he saw Hermione smiling down at him affectionately. Hermione's eyes were crinkled on the sides, and her cheeks were pink from laughing. His heart skipped a beat.

"I'm going to miss her," she said, her eyes suddenly glazing over and looking far off with nostalgia.

Draco looked perplexed. Harry had told him that she had grown rather fond of Rose, but now he was seeing her care first hand. It was beautiful. "I think you forget that you have 'forever visiting rights'," he said, imitating her voice.

Her eyes were still slightly teary, but she smiled graciously. "Thank you."

"Anytime." She was staring at him oddly. His heart skipped another beat.

He leaned in. When their lips met, a sweet, jittery feeling filled him. It was a slow kiss, both knowing it was too soon, but neither wanting to lose the precious moment. Her hand fluttered up to cup his cheek which she stroked gently. He caught her soft bottom lip between his teeth and nipped tenderly to which Hermione released a short sigh. They pulled apart, resting their foreheads together, hearts beating wildly. Hermione was the first to speak. "I think we need to take this very slow," she breathed.

Draco smiled. _She didn't say this was a mistake. She didn't say she regretted anything. She inadvertently said that they had something._ "Agreed."

"Meaning," she explained, pulling away from him, "no more of that for a bit. We both just got out of relationships. I'm not out for a rebound. If this is going to happen, it needs to happen slowly. I want to get to know you as someone besides my old school bully and a coworker."

"I never apologized for that, by the way," Draco mumbled. "I was a mean little shit."

Hermione's tinkling laugh ran through his ears. He looked back up at her, as he was expecting her to be somber and reprimand him for being a menace as a child, but instead she giggled, "you were a piece of work, weren't you?"

"You know," he began uneasily. Draco was not known for his bravery, so moments like these did not come naturally to him. "I would like to get to know you as more than the insufferable bookworm I made fun of in school."

Hermione stopped laughing and gazed at him wide-eyed. "You're serious about this?" she murmured, shocked but flattered.

"Of course," he replied with conviction. He assumed she would have seen past his mask and recognized the border-line disgusting affection he carried for her, but alas it seemed that she was not as perceptive as he thought. _She will learn_ , he thought.

His heart leapt at her shy smile. "How about we get back to work?" she suggested, looking with new eyes at their multiple letters spread across their shared desk.

"I think that would be advisable," he replied cheekily. She gently shoved him with a snort, and he added, "However, I think we have no where else to go without a hoard of owls."

She pretended to really think over his statement, and right before he would have groaned that she was overthinking simple concepts, she hopped out of her chair and said, "ready to go to the post then?"

"I think the Malfoy's have enough owls," he drawled snottily, rising elegantly and walking past her out of the library doors.

He could hear her following grumpily behind him, muttering, "stuck up rich kids."

He couldn't help but chuckle and reply, "rich men, now."

He couldn't quite hear, but he would have bet half of his inheritance that she giggled and faintly called him something akin to an arse.

(backward)

Stifled wailing could be heard through the solid mahogany door to Lucius Malfoy's office. He was currently holed up in his study attempting to avoid the rather melodramatic break up happening in the drawing room with his only solace from the woman's cries being his prized bottle of aged firewhisky. He was rather upset that he was forced to use it so soon, but the woman was entirely bothersome, and the only substance that could fully drown out her misery was a fine, stiff drink.

Lucius would never tell Narcissa, but he was rather pleased that his son was ending it with Astoria. Pureblood or not, she was a nuance. She was poisoning their son with pro-muggle propaganda, and he was not having it. While he understood that killing muggles and mudbloods was not the correct path, he could not even consider the idea of believing that they were close to the same social status as purebloods.

He was opening up a particularly nasty book on torture, _The Oldest Arte,_ when Narcissa slipped into his study wearing a look of pure mischief when she turned to him.

"Lucius, darling. How has your day been?" she asked silkily, sliding into one of his plush, leather chairs that decorated his office.

"Fine," he replied rather stiffly, assessing how much danger she posed. When, she did not outright bite his head off for something, he decided to play along with her game, as someone else must have gotten a hold of his wife's evil attention. "How was yours', my beautiful wife?"

She preened under his compliment, and the malicious glint of gossip in her eye faded for a moment to show love swell up inside her. She really loved it when he flattered her, it reminded her of when they were young and in love with no problems in the world. However, the tender emotion faded out of her eyes and her evil smirk was back. "I'm glad to hear that your day was satisfactory, dear. Today, I saw the most peculiar scene, and I thought my husband may be interested."

Lucius perked up in his chair and sat his tumbler of firewhisky to the side, eager to hear his wife's gossip. Despite his many years learning information in the Ministry through bribing high ranking officials, he could never quite top Narcissa's gossip ring. He had no idea how she got her information, but she was the best of the best if he needed information.

"Well," she began, enticing him closer. "I was almost to Twilfitt and Tatting's to get my robes for tonight," she gestured alluringly to her intricate grey robes, then once her outfit received the proper attention from her husband, she continued, "when I saw Miss Hermione Granger in a rather impassioned conversation with a strange woman."

Narcissa paused, annoyed that Lucius was paying more attention to the curve of her robes than her juicy scandal. While she would usually find his current behavior titillating, she was in no mood. She spent most of her day researching and did not want her efforts put to waste, so she snapped her fingers and gave him a 'my eyes are up here-' glare. Draco got his flair for dramatics from his mother.

Once attention was properly conferred to her story, she continued, "Miss Granger and the woman were obviously arguing. The other woman was on the verge of tears, and Miss Granger walked away in a huff. As Miss Granger is not known for being needlessly cruel, I assume that she was denying something from the woman, and Miss Granger believed she was doing the right thing. However, I couldn't figure out what Miss Granger has that she would deny to a woman in need. Usually, Hermione Granger is a humanitarian and would give her left kidney if someone needed it. However, with research, I discovered that she is now in possession of a young girl."

Lucius's face may have been blank, as usual, but inside he was gaping at his wife. How she put together this entire story in less than a day was nothing less than impressive. The more she spoke, the more he thanked Merlin he had yet to truly piss her off. Imagining her nefarious genius being turned against him almost made him shiver with fear.

"I remembered that she had an interview in the Prophet about her little cousin living with her, but when I was walking back to the apparition point, I heard two aurors conversing about a little girl who Miss Granger helped catch. They were both wondering if the girl made it back to her mother. Then it clicked," Narcissa smiled with malicious glee. "The woman who Granger was talking to must be the mother, and if she created a story about the girl being her cousin, the girl must be under protection for a reason."

Lucius was at a loss for words. He knew that letting Narcissa's beauty overcloud her intelligence in his perception was a fatal mistake, and her genius deductive skills was proof of that knowledge. The positively evil smirk she wore told him that the story was not yet at its end.

"Would you take a trip to the Ministry for me tomorrow?" His wife asked tenderly, but with a devilish undertone.

"Of course, darling."

 _ **/Thank you all for sticking with this fan fiction even when I take super long to update. Please continue reviewing and favoriting this fan fiction if you are so inclined. Two quick notes: First, I actually have spacing and indications of time change when I write this. I have for a long time, but I have no idea how to make upload how I see it. Second, This last chapter has taken so long because I really have to plan the rest of this, and I want to make it perfect. So, prepare for a lot of action :D.**_

 ** _I hope you have a fandiddlytastic week and everything is going great for you!/_**

 ** _(If you have any advice on how to upload the breaks in time, please DM me. I'm awful with technology, and I have a Mac which makes it all worse.)_**


	20. Lucius Malfoy

**_As usual, I still do not own Harry Potter or any of (Our Queen) J.K. Rowling's character's. I do have ownership of original plot lines and original characters._**

()

"Nott's journals are in!" Draco called. He and Hermione had been receiving journals for the past hour. The first of which was owled in just over an hour after they sent the letters out.

"Did he question it?" she called back from her chair among the stack of research material.

"No," Draco replied, walking the diary to Hermione. "I'm finding it very peculiar that no one so far has raised any questions as to what exactly we are doing with these journals. When did we get this trustworthy?"

"I think you mean: when did _you_ get so trustworthy," she quipped back without looking from her book.

"I resent that," he pouted.

"Deal with it," she said, looking up at him smirking, a playful twinkle in her eye. "How many do we have left?"

"Six. I think I will need to do a good amount of groveling to get the Greengrasses to lend me the journals" He grimaced at the thought. _Grovel. Money. Then, more groveling,_ he added in his head.

"Well, why don't you get us lunch while I search these?" Hermione asked in her sweetest voice.

"You know I will end up using your dependency on my house elves to make you stay with me," Draco grinned deviously.

Hermione rolled her eyes at his antics. Of late, she was finding his little witty remarks more and more endearing. However, she was unwilling to let him think she was easily won, so she quipped, "you'll need _a lot_ more than food to convince me to stay with you."

"With my dashing good-looks and my charisma? Doubtful." He gestured to his lanky body and sent a playful wink her way.

She snorted and continued reading, signaling the end of their flirtatious jesting. He listened closely but heard no owls, so he settled into the chair next to Hermione and began reading Nott's journal. Comfortable silence took over, and they sunk back into their usual system of research.

()

Two hours later:

"Malfoy," Hermione whined softly. Her head was rested on the arm of her chair and she was gazing over at Draco, trying to give her best pouty face. "I'm so hungry!"

"Merlin, woman!" he exclaimed. "Why must you pester me for food? Get your own!" He was dramatically laying over the edge of his chair waving his arms around wildly as if the act would make her do what he wished.

"Winky!" Hermione called. She sat up straight, and when the elf popped into the room, she requested politely, "Would you please bring up some tea and cottage pie?"

"Yes, Mistress," the little elf nodded, ears wagging energetically. He was outwardly pleased to have a task, and would do nearly anything for his Mistress Mione. He simply adored her, and Draco found he could not convince the elf to no longer follow Hermione's orders. When, Winky disapparated away, presumably to the kitchen, Draco let out a huff of annoyance. The elf was devious and enjoyed his melding in Draco's affairs.

Hermione turned back to Draco, a 'take-that' smile on her face. He took advantage of her lowered guard and swiftly stood up, took her hand, and dragged her upwards.

"What are you doing?" she demanded when he took out his wand.

With a swish, soft music was playing in the background. "We never celebrated our massive success with this case. We are halfway finished and that is cause for dancing!" he said playfully. Draco wrapped his arms around her waist and started leading her along with the music. His mother made him take formal dance lessons for the entirety of his preteen years, and he would be damned if they didn't woo a girl at least once.

She was resistant at first, but eventually Hermione swayed along to the music with him, giggling when he lead her into a comically low dip. He was twirling her when she caught glimpse of a silvery object and immediately tore away when she recognized Kingsley's patronus. Hermione and Draco both turned to stare at the lynx with dread filling their stomachs.

"Hermione, Rosalinda's identity has been compromised. She is being escorted by aurors to the safe house. You and Draco meet her there," Kingsley's voice rang, panic-filled, throughout the library.

That very second, Winky popped into the room, cheerfully carrying their late lunch. He stopped, frozen with worry upon seeing the patronus.

Draco, ashen faced, turned to Winky and ordered, "please put both of those meals in a container and bring them back here as quickly as possible."

"Yes, Master Draco," the elf nodded vigorously and disappeared with a crack. Merely five seconds went by before the elf was back again with two sealed bowls of food. "Your meals, Master. Is everything okay?" the little elf worried.

"No, but we will be back shortly. Do not come if father calls for you," Draco instructed after quick thought, then turned to Hermione. "Let's hurry to the edge of the apparition wards. You can side-along me once we get there."

She nodded her head blankly, and sprinted out the doors, Draco hot her heels.

Once they bounded past the gate, a tingle ran through their bodies signaling the end of the wards. As if on cue they turned toward each other simultaneously, both reaching for the other's hand, fear glinting in their eyes. Without a second hesitation, Hermione twisted pulling them both toward the safe house.

()

Lucius Malfoy was growing rather irritated with the lack of information being offered to him. It seemed that no one was willing to be 'coerced' out of a few details by the Ex-Death Eater. After leaving the Department of Child Services in a well-composed humph, Lucius decided to risk a bit more. The fact that no one seemed to know about this child, or at the very least be unwilling to present the information to specifically him, brought upon the conclusion that the girl was very important. Lucius had grown used to knowing every little happenstance at the Ministry, but after his second trial, he was treated as if he was a pesky stray kneazle. "Let them think I can be easily shooed away," he thought with destain. "I will find out one way or another."

His thoughts were answered by two aurors he passed his hidden corner on the second floor.

"Why is the Minister so concerned with a five year old? When I joined I didn't think babysitting was a part of the job," said the first auror to his partner. The man was tall with a wide frame, smooth, dark skin, and piercing gold eyes. He could not have been out of Hogwarts a few months. Such naïvety could be used for Lucius' advantage.

His partner chuckled. The other man was about Lucius' height, but rather than being pale as snow, he looked as if he spent most of his days beachside. His wrinkles were prominent despite his supposed youth, and his chest was broad, probably from hours of swimming. "I don't think a safe house is usually a part of the normal plan parents give you when they leave though," the auror grinned.

Lucius kept his distance and began silently trailing after the two, hoping to catch where the girl was located. He knew that the likelihood that the aurors would be daft enough to reveal such an important detail was slim, but there was a good chance they would think about it, and years exiled to his home gave Lucius plenty of time to learn legilimency. With a flick of his wrist and a whispered 'Legilimens', he was inside the mind of the first auror. He had limited practice with Legilimency thanks to his wand being monitored, but now that he had Narcissa's wand, courtesy of the wicked woman herself, he could cast freely and hope that the few times he managed to sneak her wand and practice would pay off.

Lucius made sure to limit his thoughts and stay very quiet, merely observing the thoughts as they ebbed and flowed through the auror's mind. _Why hasn't Potter told us about the case? No one seems to know anything about this little girl or why she needs heavy protection. Thomas asked around, and he thinks it's the same girl that was apprehended a few weeks ago. The one Amy said looked just like Draco Malfoy._

Lucius slithered out of the man's mind as his own thoughts began to boil. The very thought of his own son breeding with a mudblood was enough to have Lucius seething. No wonder Hermione Granger was protecting the little beast. The question at the forefront of his mind, however, was the mother's identity. Narcissa's story came to mind, and upon reflection, the mother must be whomever the Granger girl was arguing with. Now, all he had to do was rid his family of the monstrosity of a child and keep the mother quiet. Every Malfoy had extensive schooling of Wizarding law, particularly the less well known loopholes built by their ancestors. He knew that he had control over the child's fate. But, an attack on the child would render Narcissa and himself public targets, justified and legal or not, he did not want to put Narcissa in danger. Silencing the mother was needed. He could get his son to understand that the child was an atrocity to their family line, and Draco would eventually forget the blemish. The rest of Wizarding society would never need to know about his family's blunder. After eliminating the child and the mother, all Lucius had to fret over was Hermione Granger.

Hermione Granger was a perpetual thorn in his side. The mudblood witch would surely run to her sidekicks and find some way to have Lucius arrested with her fondness for poking her nose in everyone's business. Granger would have set up a safe house for the girl, so all Lucius needed to do was get Hermione to 'meet' the girl in the safe house long enough to not be able to persecute him. A memory charm can be preformed after the fact.

Still disillusioned and following the two aurors, Lucius found himself in front of the floo gates in the main chamber of the Ministry. "Little Wings," the two called as they stepped through the fiery green flames.

Lucius masked his devious smirk that was threatening to take over his features, and threw floo powder in the fire, exclaiming 'Little Wings' with triumph.

()

Hermione was pacing the small drawing room of the safe house, nearly wearing tracks into the dark wood floors. The cottage Hermione and Draco were holed up in was nestled into a dense patch of trees in the valley of Nidderdale, it was rather unassuming from the outside with a worn grey slate roof and chipped stone walls with vines crawling up the sides. The inside was just as plain. The furniture looked to have been donated from the home of a old widow who was quite find of roses. Decorations were sparse, but enough to make the residence feel like a guest home rather than a frilly prison.

Draco watched from the stiff love seat as Hermione wore holes in the floor, his own thoughts racing. _Who is threatening my daughter? What if father finds out? Where is her mother? I_ ** _hate_** _sitting here useless._ His restlessness grew minute by minute though he sat stiff as a statue. After twenty minutes of silence except for Hermione's shuffling, Draco snapped, "Can you stop?!"

Hermione looked at him bewildered as if she forgot he was in the same room with her. "Oh," she squeaked, momentarily pulled out of her worry. "Sorry," she said softly, and lowered herself beside him. They sat in mutual, uncomfortable silence for a time. Neither knew how long they had been there, though it would be simple to check, but after what must have been half an hour of waiting, Draco huffed and got up.

"She should have gotten here by now. What is going on?" he groaned, uneasiness lacing his every syllable.

Hermione could feel his anxiety as well as her own, so she decided that waiting was not an option. "Expecto Patronum!" When her otter slid out of her wand, he began to slip over to play with Draco, but Hermione commanded its attention. "Kingsley. Where is Rose? She has not made it. We are worrying."

The happy otter skipped out of the door and disappeared. A brief stillness fell over the couple before Kingsley's lynx barreled into the room and opened its mouth. "Malfoy Manor" was all the silvery animal said in the Minister's baritone voice before dissolving into the air.

The two words induced panic upon the pair, they turned to each other nearly simultaneously, fear pooling in their eyes.

"I will apparate to the barrier and go to the gates. You can apparate directly in. Sweep the most common areas, then let me in. We are **_not_** going to lose her," Hermione attempted to say resolutely, but worry cracked through her words. All Draco could do was nod at her command and twist on the spot, cracking out of existence.

Hermione took a deep breath before following suit, praying little Rosalinda was alright.

 ** _/Thank you so much for keeping up with this story. I know it has been a while since the last update, but I got married! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please review with comments and criticisms. Have a fabulous week and be safe!/_**


	21. Imperio

_**As usual, I do not own Harry Potter, its characters, or plot. If I did I wouldn't be nearly as poor as I am. I do own my original character and plot, so yeah. Happy Reading.**_

"Imperio!" Lucius commanded under his breath, aiming his wand at the nearest auror. The dark skinned auror stiffed as the curse took over is body. A grind spread like poison across Lucius' face. This was his favorite part: the feeling of absolute control. The Dark Lord stripped that power away from Lucius, but now that he had it back, it felt even better. "Bring me the girl," he hissed, and the auror began toward the small school, his partner following, confused.

Lucius lounged on a bench underneath a shade tree patiently waiting for his prize when a distressed woman's voice drilled through his pleasant thoughts.

"She's my daughter! I demand to see her!" The petite, blonde woman demanded. Intrigued, Lucius listened more intently.

"I'm sorry miss, but you are not listed as Rosalinda's mother. I cannot let you see her," the young, lanky male administrator said. He positioned himself between the mother and the door to the classroom.

The woman suddenly turned toward Lucius as if sensing his presence, fear etched upon her face once recognizing him. She turned back to the adminstrator as fast as she turned away. She began protesting with more strength, pulling out her wand and shoving it under his chin. His eyes dilated with fear as she whispered something Lucius could not hear up to him. He began to step to the side to let her pass when Lucius caught on to what was happening. The sly minx.

Focusing on his connection to the auror, he whispered, "now! Bring Rosalinda to the bench under the tree and give her to me."

The auror ran out of the preschool, the small child struggling in his arms, directly to Lucius, dropping the girl in his hands. With a spin and a wink toward the blonde haired mother, Lucius apparated himself and the bastard child to Malfoy Manor.

Upon Lucius' disappearance, all hell broke loose. The auror snapped out of his dazed state and frantically looked for the person who cursed him. The auror' partner rushed up to him, grabbing the tall, dark skinned man by the collar and demanding to know what he just did. Laura was rushing toward Lucius' former position, but upon blinking away, she turned toward the adminstrator and glared daggers meant to kill before apparting herself to a location she knew was close to the Manor. Come hell or high water, she would keep her daughter safe.

()

Hermione appeared at the gates to Malfoy Manor, the cusp of a wonderful idea coming to her, when she nearly trips over a small body. Dinky. She lets out a wail and falls to her knees, struggling to find a pulse on the tiny creature. A faint pulse tickles her finger, and she almost cries out in relief. Dinky's blue lids flutter open and his large eyes stare up at Hermione. She gives him a forced smile and holds him closer. "It's going to be okay. It will be okay," she reassures him, holding the little elf close to warm his frozen body.

"Yes, Mistress," Dinky let's out faintly, and his eyes droop shut. Without thought, Hermione twisted, apparating to St. Mungos.

A bustling waiting room appears around her. She runs into the doors to the left of the welcome desk and up two flights of stairs until she is in front of a different desk. 'Magical Beings' is written above a small desk. Hermione gets the attention of the receptionist and upon seeing the nearly frozen elf in her arms, the woman in scrubs calls a doctor.

"Ms. Granger," a woman' voice calls from her right.

Coming from a blank white door was a beautiful woman, black hair shining and black eyes crinkled in a smile. The smile quickly faded once the doctor caught sight of Dinky wrapped in Hermione's arms.

"What happened?" She asked, slightly panicked. She hadn't seen more than five cases of house elf abuse since the very woman in front of her passed a series of laws for the protection of house elf welfare.

"I found him tossed out of the Manor without more than a faint pulse. I want to be here, Cho, trust me, but I have to get back. There are more lives on the line," Hermione explained to her old acquaintance quickly.

Cho nodded and dexterously scoop Dinky out of Hermione's hands. Cho began walking back to the emergency ward when she turned and asked, "I thought you were in law, not law enforcement."

Hermione was almost out of the door, but called back with a hint of amusement. "I'm not. But it comes with being a part of the Golden Trio." With her remark, Hermione rushed back to of the hospital and deftly spun the second she stepped outside of the apparition wards.

()

"Dammit. Where is he?" Draco ground out as he finished searching his father's study. He had already searched the common areas and was beginning to search his father's favorite places. Draco knew he should get Hermione, but he just had to search one more place.

His blood was boiling. Draco had spent the past five years protecting his daughter from this very situation, and he had never even laid eyes on his little girl. He just couldn't understand how Lucius could hate mudbloods so much as to want to kill his granddaughter after seeing her. After teaching Draco that the only thing that mattered more than blood purity was family, how could Lucius look at his granddaughter and want to harm her?

After the search of both his father's study and private library came tits up, Draco decided to call Dinky to let in Hermione, but upon multiple calls the little elf didn't come. Worrying even more than he knew he could, Draco ran to the gates to retrieve Hermione and ask about Dinky.

Opening up the gates, questions and complaints on his tongue, he took in a breath and promptly let in fall out at the slight before him.

Hermione's shirt and face had small amounts of blood on it, and her eyes were filled with anxiety and bewilderment. The reason for which stood next to her.

"Laura." The name dropped from Draco's mouth like a brick.

The woman in question darted toward him and without warning slapped him with all of her might.

"What the fuck was that for?" Draco spluttered, stumbling backwards, clutching his red face.

"For putting my daughter in danger you son of a bitch!" Laura growled, stalking towards him for seconds.

Hermione raced to put herself in between them. "Now is not the time for a fight!" She said sternly toward the raging woman. "Your daughter is in danger! We will point fingers like children later," Hermione admonished.

With both Draco and Laura's attention back on Rose, Hermione marched forward toward the Manor with the parents following closely behind. She began commanding orders. "Draco, put up a ward to alert us when the aurors get here. Laura, keep my back as I preform my searching spells. Once you're done, Draco, keep searching your father's regular haunts."

As ordered, Draco began muttering spells and waving his wand toward the gates, and Laura took up Hermione's back, wand at the ready. They began searching the West wing, room by room, ignoring the bedrooms at Draco's advice.

Without warning, Laura darted down the hallway, Hermione following close behind in confusion. With a sharp left and right down a dark passage, Hermione found herself following Laura down a dark, mildewy staircase that could only lead to the dungeons.

While Laura was descending the stairs, slowly, Hermione sent her patronus to tell Draco where they were. "It looks like the dungeons on the southern wing," Hermione whispered to her otter which promptly took off, taking it's soft light with it.

By that point, Laura was at the bottom of the stairs warily looking around. Hermione cast lumos and followed silently. "Laura?" Hermione called quietly after ten minutes of searching.

Laura turned around, her eyes unseeing, her wand pointed at Hermione, a spell on the tip of her tongue. Hermione didn't hesitate to quickly stupefy the woman. In the blink of an eye Hermione found herself back in the war, and she would die if a curse got past her shields.

Rounding the corner, she found Lucius Malfoy grinning like the cat that got the canary. Without thinking, she whipped her wand, determined to take him out and retrieve Rose, but a whimper stopped her long enough to hear his speech.

"You Gryffindor learn so little," he smirked at her frustration. "While you were always the most intelligent out of the pack, you are still as brash as the rest of the little lions. You should know that if you shoot a curse at me, the girl dies. Just like she should have upon her conception."

Hermione growled in response, barely containing her anger when her savior came up behind her and shot a stupefy at Lucius.

The elder Malfoy deflected the spell, and narrowed his eyes to the man beside Hermione.

"Draco, how could you betray your family in this way? Have I taught you nothing?" Lucius screamed. Rose let out another whimper as his wand shook under his temper.

Draco managed to give his father an incredulous look. "Me betray the family?" He demanded. "How about your vices father? You have dragged our name through the mud! You followed a mad man for years and put our entire family in near constant peril the entire time! When you screwed up with the Dark Lord, _I_ was the one that had to atone for your mistakes with the threat of both my and mother's life. Do you not care for either of us?" Draco ended out of breath. He had never talked to his father so disrespectfully, but the longer he kept the man talking, the more time Hermione had to figure out how they could release his daughter.

Lucius was growing ever more infuriated, grinding his teeth and balling his unarmed fist. "I did everything in my power to protect you and your mother and give you both the best life possible!"

"And that includes inducting your son into an insane man's cult? Did you truly think I wanted to torture and kill people when I was sixteen? I just wanted my father to be proud of me!" Draco screamed. Hermione had never seen him so angry. It was terrifying. The silence that followed has deafening; both mentoring at each other while also seeing each other differently.

Just as Lucius began to lower his wand, a cry interrupted the moment. Laura stood up, albeit shakily, from the spot she was stunned and ran toward Lucius. She managed to hit his with a powerful cutting curse that tore into his non-dominate shoulder, but before she could do anymore damage, he whipped his wand around in a feat of impressive wand work that put both her on the ground screaming under the Crucio, and shield blocking Hermione's rapid-fire curses. Rose began to sob uncontrollably, and a grand duel began between Hermione, Draco, and Lucius; the former slowly losing his upper hand.

Curses are flying back and forth between the two parties, when a sharp cry steals away Hermione's attention. Rose was struck by a cutting curse, her leg bleeding profusely. If she had not already been boiling, Hermione was so far beyond furious she began seeing red. Her hair sparked and her fingers randomly shot out little lightning bolts as she sent curse after increasingly dangerous curse toward Lucius. Draco was growling as he sent a series of dark curses at his father. He was weakening quickly under both her and Draco's assault, sweat condensing on his brow and soaking the collar of his expensive silk robes.

With a swish of her wand, Hermione sent a bombarda at Lucius, intent of finishing the duel. The curse was deflected back at her, without thinking she ducked, however, Draco was not as lucky. Despite avoiding the curse, a piece of shattered stone lodged itself in his hip, and he fell. The brief distraction was enough time for Lucius to put a shield between Hermione and Draco, and himself with Laura and Rose.

Hermione let out a frustrated cry when her first seven spells didn't break the shield. She punched the invisible wall so hard, she was pretty sure she broke something, but alas, the wall still stood between her and the former death eater.

Hermione quickly turned back toward Draco, seeing him attempt to stand up despite the gash in hip. She knelt down next to him and whispered directions, hoping her plan would work.

When Hermione turned back, Lucius was casting his third Crucio on Laura and Rose was screaming 'Mummy, mummy, no!' Over and over again. If she had not been in war-mode, the sound of the little girl's cries would have killed Hermione, but she was determined to kill Lucius, and she had to block out everything else between them.

"Bombarda maxima!" Hermione shouted. The shield crumbled under Hermione's powerful curse, and luckily Draco's shield over Rose's cell remained, because parts of the walls imploded, sending jagged rock towards Lucius. Hermione tried, but a small piece got past her shield and cut Laura's leg. Lucius had a long cut down his face and a few on his arms. His glare toward Hermione told her he was done playing games. He turned toward Rose, murder in his eyes when Draco shouts, "the aurors are here!"

A panicked look over comes Lucius long enough for both Draco and Hermione to silently cast stupefy. The power of both spells at once blew Lucius back against a broken wall. He crumbled, unconscious. Rushing forward, Hermione bound Lucius with maybe-a-bit-too-tight conjured shackles, and started healing Laura's wounds. Draco, meanwhile, released the shield on Rose's cell and pressed a bloody hand against the door to release the lock. The little girl was quaking with terror, curled up in a pool of blood and urine in the corner of the cell. Her eyes unsure of Draco.

At least twenty aurors, lead by Harry Potter himself, stormed down the stone stairs in that minute. "What happened?"

Hermione began reporting the event while she healed Rose's injuries to the best of her ability. "We got a call that Rose was in danger, so we headed for the safe house. When she didn't show up, I sent a patronus to Kingsley, he then informed me that Rose was at Malfoy Manor. We rushed there, where we met Laura, Rose's mum, and all three of us began searching. We found him in here with Rose locked up. We dueled. Now, call two healers and have everyone taken to St. Mungo's." She looked up to see Harry staring blankly in shock. "Now," Hermione growled.

The next thirty minutes were a rush of events. Two healers were called in. The aurors hauled Lucius to St. Mungo's, Laura was stabilized by healers, then also taken to the Magical hospital with instructions for an auror to find and contact her family. The other healer quickly stitched up Draco's wound before beginning on Rose under the watchful eyes of both Hermione and Draco. "mummy. Mummy," Rose kept whimpering.

"Hermione," Harry called from the other side of the room after a few minutes of the couple worrying over their little girl. Hermione tore herself from Roses' side. Draco squeezed her hand and whispered, "I'll go with her to St. Mungo's. Meet me there soon?" With a nod, she walked over to her long-time best friend.

"Kingsley and I need a debriefing before you go to the hospital."

"Of course," Hermione replied with a sigh. She took one long look back at Rose and Draco before following Harry out of the Manor. At the gates, they were met with Narcissa Malfoy being held back three aurors while she screamed at them, "this is my home! Let me go! My son is in there! My husband is in there!"

Harry gave a side glance to Hermione as if to ask if she knew anything about Narcissa's involvement. With a shake of Hermione's head, Harry turned to the aurors holding Mrs. Malfoy. "Bring her to the Ministry. Put her in a holding cell, and I will see to her within an hour."

The three men nodded and dragged Narcissa toward the other side of the antiapparation wards. "You will tell me what is going on! I saved you! Does that mean nothing?" The woman screamed, but Harry did not turn back.

 **A.N:/ It's been a super long time since I updated, and I'm sorry for that. I'm not giving up on this, I'm just trying to survive this semester. I hope you all have a fabulous week! Thank you for reading.**


	22. St Mungos

_**I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters (sadly).**_

()

"We can try Lucius on use of unforgivables and interfering with law enforcement, but he cannot be tried for the attempted murder of Rosalinda, because technically by law it is still legal. We will confiscate the wand he was using, then interrogate Narcissa as to her involvement," Kingsley said, wrapping up their meeting. "Hermione, I want you and Draco to solve this case as fast as you both can. You don't need to come into the office unless you need to speak with me or you need something. Lucius still has people in the Ministry, and I want to prepare for the chance he doesn't go to Azkaban. I don't want him to hurt Rosalinda again. Realize that if somehow he gets away from charges, he can just request Rosalinda and we have to give her to him," Kingsley explained in a solemn voice.

All Hermione could do was nod. She didn't have time to process everything that has happened. She needed to check on Draco, Rosalinda, and Laura, then start putting all of her time into solving this case. While the list of tasks she needed to accomplish began piling up in her mind, Hermione zoned out of the conversation to attempt to organize her next few steps. First step: Visit St. Mungo's. Second: Sort out Rose's living arrangements with Laura, Draco, and Kingsley. Third: List out everything we do and do not know about the law. Fourth: Start contacting known helpful members of the Sacred 28, and giving them enough information to want to help the cause. Fifth: Figure out Draco Malfoy.

"Hermione?" Harry called, shaking her arm to rouse Hermione out of her thoughts.

"Huh?" she asks, wading out of her mind.

"Kingsley wanted to know what you believe are the next steps in solving the case," Harry explained gently knowing Hermione can be irritable when she is taken away from her musing.

"Oh," Hermione muttered, not expecting questions. "We have already sent out owls for family journals. We need to know exactly who sealed the set of laws, because we believe each set of law is not only protected by curses, but also a hidden bound item. Most old families prided themselves on their lengthy history, so we figure whichever family sealed the law used a family relic as a seal. We also need the blood of all the members of the Sacred 28 to dissolve the final protection, luckily Draco has the blood of about half of the families in himself alone, and hopefully that will work, because not all of the families are still active. So basically, we need to read through journals to find the family, research to find a precious item of theirs and find it. All the while we need some curse breakers to find the counter curses to the layers of protection, and convince members of the families to donate a drop or two of their blood." Hermione finished and let out a breath. She had a lot to do and saying it out loud made it even more real.

"Well," Kingsley began, brows furrowed. "I will contact Bill Weasley to see if he can contact you about the curses put on the laws. Talk to Joseph about writing formal letters to the families with an invitation to personally meet with you and me in the coming week. Does Friday work?"

Hermione nodded, numb.

Kingsley gave her a questioning look but decided to mark her unusual behaviour down as concern. "Meeting adjourned," he announced giving Hermione one more appraising look before he turned to leave.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked, approaching Hermione with wariness. She was slowly getting out of her seat, blank eyes still in thought not even hearing her friend. He touched her arm to get her attention in a lapse of judgement. She immediately became alert, pulling out her wand and flinging the first spell that came to her mind at the person who touched her.

Harry fell to the floor, stiff as a board, before Hermione registered that she was in no danger. After looking around and seeing no danger did she see her friend on the floor. "Oh Harry!" she cried, embarrassment flooding her cheeks. She muttered a quick Finite Incantatem, and Harry immediately leapt up from the ground rubbing his back.

"Remind me to never touch you when you're thinking," he groaned.

"I'm so sorry!" Hermione said, rushing to his side to check for injuries. Once she gave him a good inspection and found nothing more than a bruised head, which is promptly healed, she let out a thankful breath. "Please don't do that ever again."

"Lesson learned," Harry assured her with a smirk playing at his lips. "Now, I think I deserve to know what you were thinking about so hard you forgot I was here."

Hermione's facial expression hardened as she remembered her train of thought. "I have to go to St. Mungo's," she said deep worry lacing her tone. Harry followed, waiting for an explanation, as she began walking towards the Ministry atrium. "I don't know how much damage Rose took. Draco had a large cut on his hip. Laura was tortured so much I don't know if she survived." Hermione was nibbling her bottom lip in worry as she picked up her pace towards the floos, only to be stopped by her concerned best friend.

"Hermione," Harry began soothingly, "I'm sure they will be fine. It's in the hands of the healers now. What I want to know is are _you_ okay?" His eyes were boring into her own with the intensity of a very worried Harry Potter.

"Harry," she said, grasping his shoulder with her good hand for emphasis, "I'm fine. I just need to check on everyone else. Then, I will be back to torture- I mean- question Lucius." She grinned a wicked smile, the very same one she had when she finally caught Rita Skeeter.

Harry appraised her expression. Although her feelings may be genuine, Harry had developed a keen eye since the war, and he knew when Hermione wasn't fine. "Give me your hand," he commanded. When she laid her good hand in his palm, he raised an eyebrow to say 'nice try'. Huffing, she laid her broken hand in his palm, the very act of touching his hand caused her to flinch in pain. "You need to have this looked at," he said admonishing her for not getting it looked at sooner.

"Don't give me that, Harry," she said glaring. "I was not the one that demanded that I come to the Ministry without going to St. Mungo's first." Her leveled glare made him blush and apologize. "I understand, Harry. I can handle a little bit of pain. Don't worry so much about me. I really am fine," she smiled.

"How is it going with Ron?" Harry asked quietly, hoping no one would hear. They all valued their privacy, and after the war, they were practically celebrities. It seemed nothing was too private for the press.

Her face fell ever so slightly. "I'm getting over him," she said simply.

Knowing not to question Hermione when she used her clipped tone, he decided to try to lighten the mood. "With Malfoy?" he asked, wagging his eyebrows.

"Harry!" She whacked him on the shoulder despite the grin on her face. "I think you're jealous," she said with a smirk, "after all you and Draco always teased each other in school, maybe it was just flirting."

Harry almost sputtered. Hermione was funny, but never so explicit, it caught Harry off guard. Her tinkling laugh told Harry that everything was alright again- as it always was when she was laughing at his expense. "I have to go to St. Mungo's," she reminded him, holding up her injured hand. "I could, however, use an auror escort," she said winking cheekily.

Grinning at the offer, Harry took her good arm and lead her towards the floos like a proper gentleman. He even let her go through the floo first before shortly joining her in the St. Mungos waiting room.

(~)

Draco was anxious. He was lying in a bed with healers around him fixing his hip wound, but all he could think about was Rose and Hermione. His daughter was rushed off to another ward, he couldn't get information because no one knew he was her father, and Hermione has disappeared off to the Ministry with Potter. All he knew was walking was going to be a bitch for the next week, and Laura was not doing so well.

Even though he hardly knew the woman, he felt tremendous guilt settle in his stomach. She was only in this situation because he didn't take his responsibility as a father seriously enough. He could hear the healers whispering when they were wheeling her away. _Like the Longbottoms_ they said. The three words tore at his soul. She might be permanently brain dead and he would have only talked to her twice in his life- one time that he doesn't remember and another polyjuiced and talking about the child he wouldn't be a part of. As his mind tore at itself with the sharp knife of regret, he didn't even notice two people enter the room.

"Ms. Granger," a female healer squeaked, surprised. "He's not suppose to have-"

A male voice cut off the young healer. "Ms...Findlay," he began in a soothing voice, "Hermione here has a broken hand and wanted to be treated in the same room as Mr. Malfoy."

Hearing his surname, he peered up to see none other than Harry Potter and Hermione standing by the second bed in the room. He wanted to twist around and either make a snarky comment to Potter about being feminine enough to nurse Hermione back to health or check on Hermione, but the healer working on his hip thumped him hard on the temple when he attempted to turn. Resigning himself to his fate, he decided to make his comments at a later time. Maybe then he would have enough time to make them better.

It seemed no matter how much guilt Draco faced, he never lost his cutting wit.

(~)

"Can I take a look at your wrist?" the tall, blonde healer asked Hermione kindly.

With a small amount of reluctance slowing her movements, she laid her broke, bruised hand in the healers outstretched palm. The act of both moving her hand and touching the healer's pained Hermione greatly, but as a war-heroine, she refused to show pain. Only Harry could see the discomfort in her eyes.

As the Healer examined her hand with a beautiful braided yew wand, Hermione turned to check on Draco. It seemed the wound had a good amount of debris lodged in it as there were five healers pulling out scraps of stone and wood one piece at at time. When she turned back to Harry, he had a curious look about his face. It was a mixture of both regret and envy. Then as soon as she saw it, it was gone in a flash, instead replaced with careful impassiveness. She lifted an eyebrow in his direction as if to ask 'what's wrong'. He just waved her off and mouthed that he was fine.

Hermione usually would never take that answer from Harry, he was never just fine, but the healer pulled her attention away to tell her that they would need to regrow all of the bones in her hand as she had shattered a good amount of them. Harry gave her a sympathetic shoulder squeeze and said, "I will stay here the entire time if you want me to."

Hermione gave him a grateful smile in return and replied, "I would be honoured." She was truly grateful to have a friend like Harry. While they moved her into a bed close to Draco and began to remove her shattered bits of bone, she thought about the man gripping her good hand.

Harry had been beside her since the troll attacked her in the bathroom their first year. It pained her every single time he had to go into danger alone; knowing he went alone to face Voldemort killed her on the inside. She had never truly felt loss until she saw her best friend's limp body in the arms of Hagrid. He was a magnificent person. He had seemingly endless courage. He cared for everyone.

She laughed in her head as she thought back to the years she had a crush on him in Hogwarts. She didn't think he ever noticed. After all, what girl who didn't fancy a boy would spend as much time as she did researching anything he needed? Not that it hurt to read all day. She got to watch as he mooned over Cho, which was unpleasant, so she began turning her attention elsewhere. The reminder of her school-girl crush on him brought a thought to mind. Why didn't she end up with Harry?

Honestly?- She didn't feel like lying to herself would be efficient, so Hermione decided to peruse down a line of thought she had told herself was too dangerous. She wasn't with Harry because he never reciprocated. He would show hints of more-than-brotherly affection on occasion, but Hermione wasn't willing to settle for that. She was not going to be with someone who mostly treated her like a good friend and sister. She just didn't think Harry had the capability of showing her any other types of affection. She had heard the odd rumors of course, thanks to Lavender and Pavarti, that the boy-who-lived had a crush on her, but she could never believe them. Maybe he had an odd way of showing it, but Hermione never felt like he solidly held those kinds of thoughts towards her.

She let her mind wander in an attempt to ignore the searing pain of the Skele-gro. Her brain meandered about down a long path of scenarios. Some scenarios lead her to a happy life with Harry, a few peered at her with images of a lovely marriage to Ron, but most showed Draco. Even though Harry would always be her best friend, and she truly believed in marrying her best friend one day, he didn't have that same easy affection that Draco could show. Although her cozy relationship with Draco has been a few weeks at the best, there was a sort of effortlessness about it. She had to try very hard to connect with Ron, she always had to make sure Harry recognized she was there for him, but with Draco they were content to be near each other. It just felt right.

So, that was why Hermione Granger put aside the overwhelming urge to make her best friend explain his feelings. Instead, she let the moment pass knowing she was passing up a different ending to her story. She joked with Harry and counted down the moments when she could talk to Draco again.

()

 _Hermione. Hermione._

The soothing voice lifted her from her dreams to the antiseptic filled reality of St. Mungo's. Searching for the source of her wakefulness, she looked around the dim ward until she found him.

"I never took you for a snorer," Draco said in a half pompous, half sleep-drunk tone.

"I never took you for the type of man to wake a woman. I thought you were one to creep away in the middle of the night," she shot back teasingly.

"See, I tried to rid myself of you, but my heroic war scar and several angry healers prevented me from stealing away into the night."

"I understand. They weren't too fond of my trying to get up to strangle you after you started talking in your sleep."

If Hermione could see Draco, she was sure she would find a humorously over-dramatic look of outrage on his face. "I will have you know, Ms. Granger, that I sleep perfectly silent."

Deciding to abandon the comfortable humour in favor of sedating her curiosity, Hermione asked, "do you know what happened to Laura?"

"Do you know what happened to Rosalinda?" he shot back.

Understanding his anxiety, she decided her question could wait so that she could relieve him of his worries. "When I came in, they told me she was doing well. We can see her in the morning. They just wanted to take her to the children's ward with no visitors, so they had time to give her an answer about her mom and to watch her to make sure her physical injuries were just superficial."

Draco let out a sigh of half relief from his bed in the dim room. "I didn't know whether I would be granted access to her if I told them I was her father. They don't like me too much around her," he whispered, emotion building in his voice. "I didn't hear much when the healers were looking at Laura except they mentioned 'like the Longbottoms'. Merlin I hope not."

The breath practically left Hermione's lungs. The thought of Rose visiting the hospital every month to visit Laura in a perpetually trace-like state brought a fresh wave a dread pooling in Hermione's heart. She would never forgive herself if she was the reason for Rose losing her mother.

"It's not your fault," Draco said softly as if answering her thoughts.

"I know," Hermione muttered, "but that doesn't make me feel any less guilty."

Without warning, Hermione's bed starting moving. Startled, she let out a small cry until she realized that it was being pulled towards Draco's. When her bed was snug against her's, he put his wand back on the bedside table and turned back to face her. Using the softest of touches, he stroked her hair lovingly and whispered over and over in her ear, "it'll be okay." Whether he was comforting himself or her was of no consequence. After no more than ten minutes of being near each other, they floated off into the peaceful realm of dreams.

It was needless to say hospital staff was surprised to find both Draco and Hermione holding hands and sleeping soundly. The sight shocked one healer to the point of fainting, calling the other healers to her aid, only for the group of concerned medical staff to wake the young couple up with their gasps of shock.

 _ **A.N/ Yes, this did take too long, but this semester gives me more free time, so hopefully I will be able to update normally again. No, I am not giving up on this fan fiction. If you have any comments, critiques, or thought, please review. I hope you have wonderful week full of good books and sunny days.**_


	23. Aftermath

_**Hello! It's been a while, and I thank you for being so patient. I am still in the process of updating the chapters, but I am also back to writing. Updates aren't guaranteed to be on a schedule, but this story is no longer on hold.**_

 _ **(Like every other chapter: I don't own Harry Potter. Don't sue me.) Enjoy!**_

 **St. Mungo's**

"What does it take to get some god damned rest around here," Draco groaned as the gasps pulled him out of his slumber. He was having a particularly good dream about a bushy-haired brunette, and he wasn't happy to leave her. He moved to sit up, but a foreign weight on his right arm prevented his movement. He finally opened his eyes to see Hermione's hand wrapped around his own, her hair wild like a bush, and her mouth open in a tiny "o" as she lightly snored. He thought she looked adorable, but the nurses that were gaping at their joined hand were taking away from his admiration. He knew that Hermione wouldn't want a big to do, so he delicately removed his hand from hers. "Can I help you?" he lazily asked the healers.

The one nearest the front with strawberry blonde hair stepped forward, and began chattering while checking his vitals. "You took quite a hit yesterday, and we wanted to make sure your leg was healing nicely."

"How is Rosalinda and Laura?" Hermione asked groggily as she sat up and wiped her eyes. She did not like waking up to an audience, and she hoped she hadn't done anything embarrassing in her sleep.

A few of the healers left now that the entertainment was over, but the two that remained quietly went about their duties while attempting to avoid the eyes of either of their patients. Seeing that no one would answer her, Hermione shooed off the nurse that was poking at her hand and stood up much to the protests of the healers. Hermione ignored their cries and turned to Draco. "I'll be back with news," she promised. When he nodded solemnly, she walked out the doors and navigated first to the child's ward.

Coming up to the colorful reception area, Hermione calmly asked the young girl if she could check on Rosalinda.

"Are you her mother?" the receptionist asked warily.

Hermione's eyes were steel. "My name is Hermione Granger, and I am her legal guardian." She hated throwing around her name, but Rosalinda was worth the disgusting apologies the girl started gushing upon realizing she was dealing with a war hero. Within the minute, she found herself in Rosalinda's room with a healer at her side explaining the child's condition.

"She has sustained a lot of injuries. She hasn't been awake more than an hour. The blood loss was hard on her. We gave her blood replenishing potion and healed her wounds. She shouldn't have any scars, but we would like to keep her here for two more days to make sure there isn't anything we missed," Cho explained. Her brow was furrowed with concern for the small girl resting in the bed.

"Thank you," Hermione replied, bending down to lovingly stroke Rosalinda's- thankfully still brown- hair. She made a note to reapply the glamour before she left. The little the public new about Rose, the better. "How is Laura?" she asked quietly so not to disturb Rose.

Cho hesitated but ended up replying somberly, "I specialize in children, but I've talked to Laura's healer, and it seems that they need to monitor her for a week. There a chance she will never get her mind back. It will depend on how strong she is and how powerful the torture."

Hermione sighed. Nothing ever had a perfectly happy ending. "Thank you, Cho. You've done wonders. I'm so thankful."

Cho seemed to debate her reply in her head before carefully asking, "Can you tell me why she was hurt so badly?"

Hermione slightly frowned as she meticulously worded her reply to ensure Rosalinda's protection while giving Cho the answer she needed to hear. "She was born to a muggleborn and a pureblood and very well hidden until today. Lucius took her existence as a personal offense to pureblood lineage and tried to kill her," she admitted.

"Merlin," Cho whispered.

"I would appreciate it greatly if her existence was kept quite until it's publicly announced," Hermione said, a sliver of a threat lacing her tone.

"Of course," Cho said indignantly. "Healers strictly maintain patient-healer confidentiality."

"Thank you," Hermione murmured as she ran her fingers through Rosalinda's hair one last time. She quickly reapplied the glamour charms, then straightened her posture and headed towards the door- intent on seeing Laura, but before she made it passed the threshold, she turned back one last time to look at her sleeping angel. Rosalinda was pale, her glamoured brown hair was fanned around her head in a halo, and her tiny frame curled around a snatch of blankets she wrapped onto. Hermione worried deeply about her safety- she felt like she failed her- and in the back of her mind, she had begun to meticulously go over every interaction she had since she got Rose to find the place where she messed up. Hermione felt personally responsible for the pain Rose went through and vowed to protect the little girl- no matter the consequence- until her last breath. Finally walking away from her goddaughter, she made her way to the Spell Damage ward.

Unlike Rosalinda's room, Laura's was relatively easy to find as there were a dozen healers bustling in an out whispering in harsh notes to each other. Ignoring the affronted look on the receptionist's face and her angry huff, Hermione walked straight into Laura's room to see the woman. Laura's dirty brown hair had lost its shine. Her eyes were closed, but the bags underneath were deep violet and her eye sockets appeared sunken in. Her tanned frame seemed a bit greyish and fragile against the sterile white blankets heaped upon her.

Hermione lightly grabbed the arm of the nearest healer and asked, "How is she doing? What is her outlook?"

The healer was a pudgy, pasty, partially balding man. He was hardly taller than Hermione, and he appraised her with beady black eyes reminiscent of the late Peter Pettigrew. "Are you family?" he asked warily.

Hermione gave him a hard, no-nonsense glare. "For all intensive purposes, yes."

The healer glared at her heatedly, but spat out, "She is currently in a coma. If she is not out of the coma by the end of the week, there is no hope for recovery."

"What are her chances?" Hermione demanded.

Sneering, the man replied, "That information is for family only."

Hermione was currently in the middle of a bitch of a day, and his snide tone set off a spark of rage inside her that had been building up for weeks. "You listen here," she growled, pulling his arm forward and alerting the nurses nearby who stood along the walls watching cautiously. "This woman is my charge, and if you think that you can deny me access to her medical supervision, you are sorely mistaken."

They had a stare-down for a solid minute before the man relented and grumbled, "She only had a couple of minutes of torture, so assuming that the curse was not extremely powerful, she has a decent chance of recovery."

Hermione let out a relieved breath and released the man's thick arm. "Thank you," she replied sincerely only to have the man snort and stomp out of the room. Looking up from his former place, Hermione was greeted by a room full of healers staring at her with a mixture of awe and amusement. It seemed the man she cornered wasn't the most loved healer in St. Mungo's. Ignoring the eyes on her, Hermione made her way over to Laura's bed.

Taking the woman's lifeless hand, Hermione spoke in a low voice. "I'm sorry this happened, but your daughter needs you. You need to fight your way out of this. I have been in your position before, and you just have to battle your way out of your own mind- knowing that others rely on you." She paused from her impassioned monologue, realizing that she probably looked like a crazy person talking to a comatose patient. Before leaving, she whispered one last word of encouragement, "If you wake up, you can finally punch Draco."

With that, she went back to Draco to ease his worries before heading off to the Ministry again.

( _forward_ )

"How did you hear about the little girl you kidnapped?" Hermione questioned Lucius again through clenched teeth.

Lucius was briefly healed at St. Mungo's, then brought to the Ministry where Hermione Granger was currently questioning him at wand point. He was lounging arrogantly on the bench in his cell and berating her at every chance.

"I'm not speaking without my attorney. Especially not to a filthy mudblood," he sneered.

Hermione's self control was waning, and he morals were degrading. "Well, I have your wife in a cell, and her wand was used to cast an unforgivable on a auror- which she gave willingly. I could always throw her in Azkaban. I wonder how long she would last," Hermione began to ponder.

"You wouldn't dare!" Lucius growled.

Hermione pretended to be completely nonchalant about the ordeal. "Oh I would. Why should I care about the well being of a woman who had only been nasty to me?"

"You should be grateful that she allowed you into our home, you ungrateful mudblood!"

Hermione glared at Lucius and replied, "I see your vocabulary of insults is rather limited."

Lucius gave her a venomous glare, but made no move to speak, so Hermione pushed further.

"I think she would last two months. Maybe three if I don't accidentally put her in the same cell as one of the Death Eaters you all betrayed."

Lucius roared. Every insult he knew spewing out of his mouth, but Hermione ignored him and merely walked away. She pondered some thoughts out loud as she reached the door. "I should check on Narcissa's cell. I might have forgotten to keep the dementor supervised."

The door clicked shut, and Lucius' ravings almost broke the silencing ward placed around the interrogation room. Harry was waiting on the other side of the door with a grin on his face. "He's all yours," Hermione winked and sauntered toward Narcissa's cell. She heard Harry chuckle at her exit and called down the hall, "Thanks!"

Narcissa was much less pompous than her husband; she still, however, glowered at Hermione upon her entrance. Her hair was falling out of its tight bun, her clothes were wrinkled, and her mascara had run at the edges of her enraged eyes.

Unlike the interrogation of Lucius, Hermione sat down across from Narcissa quietly and approached her in a caring tone. "Mrs. Malfoy, you are in a unique position," Hermione began delicately. "Your husband has preformed an unforgivable on an auror which warrants time in Azkaban. He did so with your wand, which makes you an accomplice."

Narcissa's bright blue eyes were wide, and her pale frame was ghostly white. She managed to keep enough composure to imperiously demand her release. "I have done nothing wrong, and I am being unfairly detained by being kept away from my husband and my son."

Hermione's eyes softened a fraction. "Draco is currently in St. Mungo's with a healing hip wound, but he should recover nicely."

Lady Malfoy relaxed almost imperceptibly, but kept her mouth in a tight line and her steely gaze fixed on Hermione.

"I would like your help, Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione admitted despite her growing distain for the woman in front of her. "I care a great deal for the little girl your husband attempted to murder."

A wicked look glinted from Narcissa's eyes. A very Slytherin smirk. "I suppose you want me to talk to my husband and convince him that when he inevitably gets out of prison that he should avoid your child," she drawled- believing she had a upper hand over the war hero.

Hermione smirked. She had Narcissa just where she wanted her. She would never tell a soul that the sorting hat had briefly considered her for Slytherin as well. "I want you to convince your husband to avoid your granddaughter."

Narcissa's haughty disposition melted away as Hermione's words trickled into her understanding. There was clearly a war happening behind Mrs. Malfoy's vigilantly neutral face. She had to decide whether blood status won over family, and Hermione took a big gamble on family winning. Narcissa's eyes spoke of understanding -most likely gripping why her husband was still a threat despite an attempted murder- and suspicion. "Am I to presume that the filth laid on my family is half yours?" Narcissa quipped, but her tone didn't hold as much venom as it normally would.

Another card Hermione had up her sleeve was Draco's innocence. "No. She is my goddaughter, but her biological mother is not British."

"What would my son be doing with some harlot from another country?" Narcissa hissed.

"He was imperiused by his good friends was back in sixth year. He had to hide the baby away with the mother because of you and your husband." Hermione prayed that Draco wouldn't flay her alive for betraying his promise to not tell anyone the truth. She figured his mother would figure out as soon as she saw her husband again anyways.

Narcissa sat back in her chair with a bewildered expression. She felt betrayed that her own son would keep her granddaughter away because he feared his parents. It hurt her, but she knew that what happened that day would only have been worse six years ago. She certainly hated the very thought of a stain on their perfectly pure family, but she couldn't quite get passed the thought of a granddaughter. She had wanted a little baby for years, and suddenly Draco's behaviour fell into place. He didn't want Astoria, because she would not have accepted his daughter. Her little Draco had a daughter, and he had done everything to protect her from his mother. "What's her name?" Narcissa whispered.

"Rosalinda Vela."

Narcissa let out a tiny, uncharacteristic whimper. Despite the mudblood woman keeping the child, Draco still convinced her to follow the Black naming tradition. The sentiment was not lost in her. "Where is she now?" Narcissa asked, still deep in thought.

Hermione stiffened. "I am afraid I cannot tell you that," Hermione replied warily eyeing Narcissa.

Mrs. Malfoy's head hung at her reply. She was at a loss of what to do. Her values were battling each other. On one hand, she knew that the mudbloods were a threat to magical society. She cringed at the thought of having a grandchild that was anything less than pure of blood. However, on the other hand, her family was her everything, and she knew that by ridding her family of its stain, she would push away her precious Draco- just as her family had once done to her beloved sister. Perhaps they could reach a good middle ground. If Granger was willing to keep the kid and keep Draco's secret, maybe Draco could find a pureblood wife and occasionally visit the kid.

"I'll see what I can do," Narcissa relented at last.

Hermione slowly nodded her head while closely examining the woman in front of her. She didn't trust for a second that this woman wouldn't change her mind when the opportune time came. "I want a Vow," Hermione demanded, and mentally added: _and I'll obliviate you if you don't agree_.

Narcissa's eyes shot towards hers. They were filled with bitterness, but with enough deliberation, Narcissa stood and said, "I will pre-approve the wording. If it seems too risky, I will not participate."

Hermione had to see the logic in Mrs. Malfoy's proposal. "I will have you Vow that you will do everything in your power to prevent any physical harm to Rosalinda by your husband or a person that he imperiuses or hires. Does that sound reasonable?"

Narcissa looked Hermione over through narrow slits while meticulously scanning through the wording. "It appears so. Who will oversee the Vow?" Mrs. Malfoy asked snobbishly.

"The Minister," Kingsley announced as he opened the door to the interrogation room. He had been watching Hermione's progress with the Lady Malfoy and decided to make a theatrical entrance. It was amazing in itself that Hermione managed to get Narcissa Malfoy to show some semblance of care for her illegitimate granddaughter, but it was truly mind-blowing that the older woman was willing to take an Unbreakable Vow.

Narcissa seemed vaguely impressed the Hermione had managed to get the Minister to oversee the Vow, but didn't say a word until Kingsley had their hands locked and asked if they were ready. "Yes."

( _forward_ )

"Dinky!" Hermione called upon apparating to the gates of Malfoy Manor. She knew she had favor with the eccentric house elf, and she needed his willingness to serve.

"Yes, Mistress Hermione?" the little elf greeted upon his sudden appearance before her.

Hermione gave the elf a bright smile. "I was wondering if any mail came for Draco and I. There should be a lot of journals coming in, and we need to continue our research," she carefully explained.

Dinky's large eyes gazed up at her with annoyance. "Master Draco and Mistress Hermione should be resting. They be most injured."

Hermione gave the elf another smile. "My hand is fixed, and Draco is getting bored just laying all day," Hermione assured.

Dinky's defenses crumbled under Hermione's sunny disposition. He popped away, but was back within seconds with a bundle of brown paper wrapped packages. Before he handed the bundle to Hermione, he demanded, "Mistress must promise Dinky that she will make sure Master Draco does not hurt himself."

Hermione let out a giggle at Dinky's pressing tone. "We both knew that there is no stopping him if he wants something.".

Dinky cracked a smile and handed over the bundle of journals. "Mistress Hermione is best for Master."

"Thank you, Dinky. I will bring Draco back as fast as I can," Hermione vowed.

Dinky grinned and popped away, presumably to do more chores in the Manor. Hermione took a deep breath, knowing that the coming days would be trying, then apparated to St. Mungo's.

( _forward_ )

"Look here!" Hermione squealed, shoving a journal into Draco's face. Draco was still confined to a bed, so Hermione pulled her influence, and Draco pulled his money to get them into a private room with Rosalinda and Laura. Luckily, the Malfoy family had paid for an entire ward of St. Mungo's, so they had a room for the family. While the room was meticulously sanitized, it was crowded with three beds and Hermione's chair. The room was a beautiful pastel green with dark wood floors and sheer curtains. The chair Hermione had set up camp in was gloriously soft, yet supportive, and there were a few paintings of sunny meadows on the walls to bring cheer. Laura was at the far end of the room, closest to the door, as she needed the most medical assistance and room. Rosalinda was placed inbetween her two parents and was deep in a potion-induced sleep. Draco was furthest from the door as he only needed monitoring for the next two days to make sure his walking would be fine. Hermione was in the corner talking in hushed whispers with Draco over their piles of journals.

Draco was rightfully annoyed at the bushy haired brunette sitting beside him. While he was growing to care for her more and more each day, she still held the ability to push all the same buttons she did in school. "Dammit Granger! Get that away from my face! Just tell me what it bloody says!" he whispered harshly.

Hermione huffed, but reported her findings. "On the Third of May, a member of the Black family sealed the laws. It seems that Mrs. Aubrey Nott was miffed that her family was not chosen for such an honour."

Hope soared in Draco's chest until reality set in. "Shit. Which Black? They've intermarried the most, and you never know which of their crazy spawn kept the heirlooms."

Hermione's browns furrowed. "Look in the Black journals that Harry sent and see what they say about heirlooms from that era. Then, we can go back to Harry's place and look for more journals that may talk about inheritances of children and family trees. You never know if you have it."

Draco fell back into his bed grunting in frustration and a bit of pain. "Why is there never a clear answer? Why can't the bloody journal just say 'it's a trashy emerald brooch of a peacock'?"

Hermione let out a trill of giggles that filled the room with a delightful air despite the tragedy surrounding them. "Knowing the Black family, it would be some sacred dagger formed by the blood of their house elves."

Draco's eyes were closed as he relaxed on his bed, but his lips were curved up in a wide smile. "I bet it still looked ridiculously gaudy," he mumbled.

Looking at the time, Hermione saw that it was already two in the morning. She gave the clock a wane smile and turned back to a sleepy Draco Malfoy. "Go to sleep," she whispered and reached up to stroke his hair. She had always wondered if it was as silky as it looked. A deep rumble came from his chest as he nuzzled his head into her hand. His hair was not as silky as it looked- it was actually quite thick with just enough softness. She ran her fingers through his hair and watched as he slowly fell asleep in front of her eyes. His stressed, wrinkled brow relaxed and his lower lip puckered out, and he looked like a cherub. Hermione thought that if they ever got through the drama chasing after them, she would want to see that face every night before she fell asleep.

Once she knew he was in a deep sleep, she moved over to Rose's bed. Her little goddaughter was beautiful. She never wanted to lose her. Hermione didn't know how long she stood there, memorizing the little girl's pouty sleeping face, but just as the stress of the day began to settle into a form of deep drowsiness, a person walked into the room. Hermione resisted the all encompassing urge to whip out her wand and fire a quick stupefy at the intruder, and upon turning to see the guest, she wished she hadn't.

"Hermione Granger," the woman drawled in a nasally tone. "It seems you always leave along a string of lovers."

Rita Skeeter.

She was wearing a sickeningly tight, green sheath dress that contrasted horribly with her purple fur lined coat and bright maroon, pointed heels that clicked on the floor like nails on a chalkboard. Her devious smile held a lifetime of shamelessness and wicked dealings. Her face was a bit more wrinkled and her hair had a few grey strands popping out of her elaborate up-do, but otherwise she was the same scum that Hermione felt no remorse capturing.

"I'm sure the daily prophet would love to hear that our little Golden Girl moved on so quickly from her fiancé. And a Death Eater! Oh, I'm sure they would practically drool when they find out you've been caring for his bastard child as well. Tell me, how long has this little affair been going on?" Rita hissed, slithering closer with her quick-quotes-quill following behind her like a loyal dog.

In a flash, Hermione had her wand under the horrid woman's chin. She spoke quietly and deathly calm. "If I hear one story in the paper about myself, Draco, or Rosalinda, you will never see another newspaper again. Do you understand?" Hermione's eyes were flashing amber and her teeth were bared like a lioness protecting her cubs.

Rita only gave Hermione a revoltingly saccharine sneer. "Are you threatening me, little girl?" Rita snapped.

Hermione snapped. With a wave of her wand, a glass jar appeared in her hand, and one silent flick later, and a little beetle took Rita's place. Hermione wasted no time collecting and sealing the animagus in the jar. She cast an impenetrable charm on the jar and poked tiny air holes in the lid. All the while, she grinned evilly at the little bug that was scuttling up the sides of the jar in panic. "Don't ever threaten my family, you bitch," Hermione growled at the little beetle.

"What the hell was that?" another voice came from the room.

Hermione turned, automatically moving the jar behind her back, and saw Draco sitting up in his bed looking at her with a mix of awe and fear. Seeing that she was in good company, she set the jar on his bedside table and explained her history with Rita Skeeter.

( _a dramatic story later_ )

"I'm not sure if I find your evil side attractive or terrifying," Draco admitted with a goofy grin.

Hermione rolled her eyes, but a blush crept up her tanned neck. "We need to sleep," she ordered, then set herself out to clean up the room. She put Rita's jar in a far corner of her extended purse, organized all of the bags of personal possessions by person, and fixed the flowers decorating Rosalinda's bedside.

"You need to sleep to," Draco said simply, pulling her away from her distractions.

"I will," she said, turning away from him and searching for something else to tidy.

"Come here," Draco commanded in a low, soft voice that she couldn't help but to follow.

When Hermione was within arms reach, he grabbed her hand and squeezed. "I want you to go home and sleep. Take the journals with you. We will all still be here in a few hours," he said. Blue bags had settled under his eyes, and he looked as if keeping his lids open was a monumental task. Hermione felt horrible that she was the reason he was so drained, but she couldn't stand the thought of leaving them. So, instead of curling up in her plush bed at home, she folded herself into the chair next to Draco's bed and rested her head on the side of his mattress like a pillow.

Draco let out an exasperated sigh at her stubbornness, but turned so that he was facing her relaxed form. He was constantly amazed by the level of caring she was able to have. It was like an endless well of love, and he knew that he wasn't deserving of any of it, but he just couldn't pull himself to push her away. So instead, he promised himself that he would grow to be worthy of her care, and then- and only then- would he finally ask her on a date. He knew he would never be a good person, but he would try to be the best person for her- and for his daughter. He was adamant that he would be a part of her life. With the help of Hermione, they would get rid of the blasted law, and he would be able to tell everyone that Rosalinda was his daughter, and he loved her more than the world.

He fell asleep to dreams of a family- one where his daughter played with a little boy that had bright blonde hair with a touch of curl.

 _ **A.N./ Thank you so much for sticking with my story despite my finickiness. I hope you have a fabulous week! Please review with comments, critiques, and criticisms.**_

 _ **This story has very little editing upon being published, so if any of you would like to beta the chapters before I publish them, I would be very grateful for the help :)**_


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